TEL AVIV, Israel: Three years after Hamas' October 7 attack, at least nine Israelis from families directly affected by the assault are running for parliament in this month's election.

They come from parties across Israel's political spectrum, but many say they want to help heal a country still deeply affected by the attack.

Personal experiences of loss and the struggle to bring hostages home have shaped the candidates.

Michal Hirsch Negri, 60, was inspired to enter politics by the death of her son Roee, who was killed while fighting Hamas attackers at Kibbutz Be'eri. About one in 10 residents of the kibbutz were killed in the attack.

Roee had recently married and was building a career in high-tech. After the attack began, he called members of his reserve counterterrorism unit and went to fight the attackers. His comrades later described his final moments.

"He told them: 'We are not looking at the bodies. We are here to save people. We are here to save our country.' And this is a sentence that is engraved in my heart," his mother said.

Hirsch Negri is running for Together, a political alliance led by former Prime Minister Naftali Bennett. The alliance brings together left-wing, right-wing and centrist parties seeking to defeat Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's nationalist-religious coalition.

Another candidate, Noam Tibon, 64, is a former general whose son and his young family were trapped at their home in Kibbutz Nahal Oz during the attack. Tibon and his wife traveled from Tel Aviv to rescue them, fighting Hamas militants along the way and helping wounded people reach the hospital.

Tibon has blamed the October 7 security failure on Israel's leadership. Netanyahu has rejected responsibility for the breach and has resisted calls for an independent investigation.

Sharon Sharabi, 51, is running for the right-wing Israel Our Home party. He became involved in politics while campaigning for the release of hostages held in Gaza, including his brothers Yossi and Eli, who were taken from Be'eri.

Yossi died in captivity. Eli survived and was released in early 2025 after nearly 500 days in Gaza. His wife and two teenage daughters were killed during the attack on the kibbutz.

Not every candidate from an October 7 family is seeking to remove Netanyahu from power.

Talik Gvili, whose police officer son Rani was the last Israeli hostage whose remains were recovered from Gaza, was personally selected by Netanyahu to run for his party. She has said she wants to continue her son's mission of defending Israel and supports Netanyahu's leadership.

However, most candidates from families affected by October 7 support parties opposed to Netanyahu. Their views are largely driven by what they believe were failures on the day of the attack and in the years since.

Shira Shapiro, 51, is running for Yashar, a new centrist opposition party led by former military chief Gadi Eisenkot. Eisenkot's own soldier son was killed in Gaza.

Shapiro's eldest son, Aner, was a 22-year-old off-duty soldier and musician who attended the Nova music festival when Hamas attacked. He took shelter with 26 other people in a roadside bomb shelter.

As Hamas militants threw grenades into the crowded shelter, Aner picked them up and threw them back outside. His final moments were captured through dashcam footage, an audio recording made by another victim, and a photograph taken by a survivor.

The experiences of these candidates have made the October 7 attack a central part of their political campaigns as they seek to influence Israel's future.