Majority of votes for early Kadima primaries achieved

Party's council approves change in statue that allows mid-September premiership race; Likud officials say Mofaz considering asking party to join coalition should he be elected chairman
Attila Somfalvi

An alteration of Kadima's party code enabling it to hold primary elections in mid-September was approved Monday by more than half of the 180 members of the faction's council.

Party Code

Livni, Dichter fear Olmert 'keeping vote quiet' / Attila Somfalvi

Advisors to foreign, internal security ministers attempt to gather votes for alteration of party code enabling primaries, say Olmert distracting members from vote with political issues in order to prevent possibility of elections

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Associates of Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni have accused Prime Minister Ehud Olmert's camp of seeking a low voter turnout in order to thwart the initiative. The turnout was in fact low, leading party heads to extend the vote by a few more days in order to gain the necessary majority for the statute change. Eventually 91 council members voted in favor of the change, as opposed to only a few dozen who voted against it.

The leading candidates for Kadima's chairmanship include Livni as well as Ministers Avi Dichter, Meir Sheetrit and Shaul Mofaz. Olmert has hinted over the past few weeks that he may also be in the running, but senior Kadima officials, including those close to the PM, say his chances of running are slim due to the ongoing criminal investigations against him.

Meanwhile, senior Likud officials said Mofaz is considering asking the party to join the coalition should he be elected Kadima chairman.

A source close to Mofaz said in response, "The goal is to eventually form a government based on the existing coalition. However, we are not ruling out any possibility. We want to maintain governmental stability."

The Likud officials added that should Mofaz's efforts to establish a coalition consisting of Kadima, Labor and Shas fail, he may opt for setting up a center-right government with the Likud, possibly with the addition of Yisrael Beiteinu, the Pensioners' Party or Shas.

However, both Likud head Bnejamin Netanyahu and Labor charman Ehud Barak oppose Shas' demand to increase child welfare payments. Mofaz has said that he would seek out a compromise that would satisfy Shas, if only partially.