Peres Challenges Sharon’s One-Man Rule
Excerpts;
“Peres, speaking on the Israeli television program Meet the Press, said he would have chosen candidates differently and that it was not necessary for Prime Minister Ariel Sharon to decide alone who will represent the Kadima party. Every other party holds primaries or designates its central committee to nominate candidates.”
“Peres’s aides later denied that he asked the Prime Minister to place him in the top 10 list of candidates. Peres refused to tell the television program which candidates have been nominated, but Channel Two television reported that Peres is in the first 10 on the list.”
“The top candidate after the Prime Minister, according to Channel 2, is Finance Minister Ehud Olmert, followed by Justice Minister Tzipi Livni.”
“In fourth place is former security agency director Avi Dichter, followed by Minister Meir Sheetrit, Chaim Ramon, Peres, Defense Minister Sha’ul Mofaz, Tzachi HaNegbi and Minister Avraham Hirchson.”
“In other election news, … The Likud’s Central Committee is scheduled to meet Sunday and approve Netanyahu’s proposal barring candidates who have served three months in jail for criminal charges. The meeting originally was scheduled to take two days. Party officials said, ‘There was no demand from speakers, and so the schedule was made smaller’ – apparently following an agreement between Netanyahu and Feiglin.”