MK Eliyahu Ravivo (Likud) announced Thursday morning he will not run in the party's primary, criticizing the electoral system and the prevalence of reserved slots. His withdrawal follows reports this week that he was offered the ambassadorship to the UAE in exchange for stepping aside.
MK Eliyahu Ravivo (Likud) announced Thursday morning that he will not run in the party's primary, citing the electoral system and the prevalence of reserved slots as making it very difficult to secure a realistic position. His statement followed reports that had emerged Monday evening from Amit Segal (N12) and later confirmed by Israeli Army Radio (Galatz) on Thursday morning, indicating that Ravivo was omitted from the official primary ballot after being offered the ambassadorship to the United Arab Emirates in exchange for stepping aside.
The timeline of events: on Monday evening (August 10), N12 reported that associates of Prime Minister Netanyahu had offered Ravivo the UAE ambassador post if he withdrew from the primary race. On Thursday morning, Galatz reported that Ravivo's name was not on the official primary ballot. Shortly thereafter, Ravivo issued a public statement announcing his withdrawal and criticizing the electoral system. The announcement effectively ends his candidacy in the Likud primary, which is expected to take place next week.
8 developments
- StrongAnother Likud MK says he will not run in primaries, accuses party of shirking responsibility
- StrongAyelet Shaked says she will not run in elections, plans to register for Likud
- StrongMK Yoav Segalovitz resigns from Knesset, confirming earlier reports
- DevelopingNetanyahu threatens to quit Likud unless granted 10 reserved Knesset slots
Source and signal
- Open-source intake