Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has decided to abandon his controversial plan to cancel the Likud primaries and replace them with a appointments committee, according to a report aired Monday on Kan News. The move came after he concluded that the proposal was facing strong resistance inside the party.
According to the report, Netanyahu now believes that giving up the appointments committee could help him secure an unprecedented 8 to 10 personal slots on the party’s Knesset list. However, Likud lawmaker and Knesset Economics Committee chair David Bitan, who has led the opposition to the plan, has not agreed to grant Netanyahu the number of reserved spots he wants.
Bitan publicly confirmed the existence of discussions over canceling the democratic internal process and attacked the idea in an interview with Kan’s “Kalman Lieberman” program. “It contradicts the democratic principle in Likud. I know Netanyahu told people he wants an appointments committee, this is a very significant change in Likud,” he said. He also criticized Netanyahu’s past choices for reserved slots, saying, “So far he has not succeeded with his reserved spots over the years. He did not bring names that lifted the list.”
Bitan said attempts were made to soften his opposition, adding, “They sent me messages to put me in the appointments committee, but I think the center will not approve Netanyahu’s request.” He urged ministers, MKs and party members to oppose the move, warning that removing democracy from the party would threaten its future. “All the parties that are not democratic disappear within 8 years,” he said, adding that Likud’s strength comes from its democratic base.
