In about a month and a half, Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni could become Israel’s second female leader — the first since Golda Meir left the prime minister’s office 34 years ago.
But Livni faces a number of hurdles in putting together a coalition among Israel’s disparate political parties. And she must do so within 42 days.
If she fails, the country will hold elections in early 2009, a year and a half ahead of schedule.
Livni won the Kadima Party primary Sept. 17 by a 1 percent margin of victory. She beat Transportation Minister Shaul Mofaz by a mere 431 votes — 43.1 percent to Mofaz’s 42 percent, according to Israeli media reports.
Livini, 50, will succeed Prime Minister Ehud Olmert as head of Kadima. Olmert, the target of a career-ending corruption probe, had promised to step down as soon as a new Kadima leader was chosen. He will remain as a caretaker leader until a new coalition is approved by parliament.
After the Kadima vote Sept. 17, Livni told the party faithful, “You fought like lions … you did an amazing thing, and I just want to do all the things you fought for,” she said. “I know you did it as friends, but, like me, you did it because you want this to be a better place.”
If Livni fails, and the country is forced into early elections, Livni would face former Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of the hard-line Likud Party. Polls indicate the two are tied. A new nationwide vote would likely turn into a referendum on the current effort to forge a historic peace deal with the Palestinians.
Foreign minister since 2006, Livni is Israel’s lead negotiator in the peace talks. She is a rare female power figure in a nation dominated by macho military men and a religious establishment with strict views on the role of women. A former lawyer, army captain and one-time agent in the Mossad spy agency, Livni favors diplomacy over confrontation, even though she said last week that she has “no problem pulling the trigger when necessary.”
A victory by Mofaz would have raised serious questions about Israel’s involvement in peace talks with both the Palestinians and Syria. His approach is seen as far less conciliatory than hers. Had he won, the Iranian-born politician could have become Israel’s first prime minister of Sephardic descent.
Two other candidates, Cabinet minister Meir Sheetrit and former Shin Bet security service director Avi Dichter, lagged far behind in the polls.
Joyce Amiel, a Kadima supporter in Tel Aviv, said she voted for Livni “mainly because she is a woman, even though her positions are not clear. We think she would do the best job. We want her to win.”
Casting her vote in Tel Aviv, the usually reserved Livni bubbled with uncharacteristic enthusiasm. She said she was pleased with the turnout at her polling station and urged people to vote.
“You can determine today what the character of Kadima will be,” Livni said. “You can determine today if you really have had enough of old-time politics. Come and vote, bring your children, and show them how you are changing the country.”
Palestinian Information Minister Riad Malki was hopeful that peace talks could succeed under Israel’s new leadership.
“We welcome the results of the election, and we are going to deal with any new prime minister in Israel,” he told the Associated Press. “We hope this new prime minister will be ready to … reach a peace deal with the Palestinians that ends the occupation and allows the establishment of an independent Palestinian state living beside Israel.”
The primary was Kadima’s first since the party was founded by then-Prime Minister Ariel Sharon in 2005. Sharon suffered a debilitating stroke in early 2006, and Olmert subsequently led the party to victory in elections.
Olmert is under police investigation over his financial dealings. But he has been pursuing peace talks with the Palestinians and has pledged to continue as long as he is in office.
Israeli political science professor Gadi Wolfsfeld predicted Livni could use a peace deal to win a national election.
“If she comes to a tentative agreement with the Palestinians, why not run on that platform?” he said.