Prime Minister Netanyahu said at a meeting with Likud council heads that while he opposes an arranging committee and prefers primaries, he will add a clause to today's decision stating that if the national security situation requires it, he will head an arranging committee together with five other council heads. The remarks clarify his position amid ongoing internal party tensions over the primary process.
Prime Minister Netanyahu's remarks at the meeting with Likud-affiliated local council heads on Sunday afternoon provide a more specific elaboration of the position he hinted at earlier in the day. In a report at 14:42, The Zioneer noted that Netanyahu said he prefers primaries but keeps the option for a sorting committee if the security situation requires. Now, he has stated that he will add a formal clause to the meeting's decision today, explicitly authorizing him to head an arranging committee together with five council heads in the event of a national emergency.
The internal Likud debate over the primary process has been a recurring theme in recent weeks, with Netanyahu reportedly demanding reserved slots and threatening to leave the party if his demands are not met. The new clause appears to be a compromise: maintaining the principle of primaries while creating a security-based exception that would allow Netanyahu to control the list composition in a crisis.
It remains unclear whether the addition will satisfy critics within the party who oppose any form of arranging committee, or whether it will be seen as a backdoor to bypass primaries altogether.
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