Introduction
Harav Avraham Yosef is the Chief Rabbi of Holon, Israel and is a Sephardi representative on the Chief Rabbinate Council (Moetzet Harabbanut Harashit).
Background
Harav Avraham Yosef is a son of Shas' spiritual leader, and former Israeli Chief Rabbi, Ovadia Yosef, and a brother of Rabbi Yaakov Yosef, a Jerusalem politician who was a member of the Eleventh Knesset. Yosef served for thirteen years in the Military Rabbinate and in 2013 would be the first choice of his father to be nominated for the position of Sepharadi Chief Rabbi but would pull out due to negative publicity concerning a 2010 ruling on judges joining a prayer minyan.
Chief Rabbi of Holon
Dr. Nissim Leon, of Bar-Ilan University, researches the Shas movement and says that Avraham Yosef is a new rising star worthy of note for the political party. Leon states that, "Rabbi Avraham Yosef is building up his reputation using a similar method to his father's, combining halakhic rulings with lectures and classes for large audiences. Among other things, he is a very popular halakhic arbiter on the Haredi radio station Kol Chai."
2007 Rabbinate shmita decision
During 2007, Sephardic and Ashkenazi rabbis were at odds over whether to allow the sale of fruit and vegetables during shmita. Later in the year, the Chief Rabbinate set up a special body, headed by Rabbi Ze'ev Weitman, and Rabbi Avraham Yosef to implement heter mechira.