The Likud party canceled a scheduled vote on primary regulations and Prime Minister Netanyahu's reserved slots after court petitions were filed, according to Yuval Karni (N12). Party sources told Karni that the repeated delays serve Netanyahu's goal of canceling the primaries and appointing the Knesset list via an arranging committee.
The Likud party's scheduled vote on primary regulations and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's proposed reserved slots was canceled due to court petitions, according to Yuval Karni (N12). Party sources told Karni that the repeated delays serve Netanyahu's goal of bypassing the primaries and having the party list assembled by an arranging committee. The vote had been scheduled for Tuesday morning.
The cancellation was first reported by The Zioneer on Monday evening (20:22 Jerusalem) and again this morning (08:05 Jerusalem). The current report by Karni provides the reason for the cancellation — legal challenges — and the political context. The move follows a similar cancellation on July 16, when Likud primaries were canceled after a petition by the Social Forum and the National Histadrut (The Zioneer, Thu Jul 16, 14:15 Jerusalem). That day, the party issued a statement quoting Netanyahu as ordering the cancellation due to legal delays (Thu Jul 16, 15:15 Jerusalem).
The dispute over the Likud primary process has been ongoing for weeks. On June 22, The Zioneer reported on infighting over Netanyahu's demand for 10 reserved slots. On June 28, a Likud hopeful filed a court petition demanding primaries regulations. On July 8, Netanyahu again requested to postpone a meeting on the primaries. On July 20, Channel 14 published recordings of the Likud Constitution Committee meeting, revealing anger over reserved slots for associates of Haim Katz and Netanyahu's statement that only a security situation preventing physical voting would justify canceling the primaries (Mon Jul 20, 20:22 Jerusalem). Later that evening, the scheduled vote on PM slots and regulations was canceled.
It remains unclear when a new vote will be scheduled, and whether the party will ultimately hold primaries or move to an arranging committee, which would give Netanyahu greater control over the Knesset list.
5 developments
- StrongLikud primaries reportedly set to be canceled; Netanyahu to determine list
- StrongLikud confirms cancellation of today's vote, citing Netanyahu's order over legal delays
- DevelopingNetanyahu offers Likud MKs specific reserved list slots amid infighting
- DevelopingLikud sources: Netanyahu seeks to cancel primaries to prevent defections in a deadlock scenario
Source and signal
- Internal intake