Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced overnight Monday that he intends to seek approval from the Likud Secretariat for guaranteed places on the party’s Knesset slate for Defense Minister Israel Katz, Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar and Minister Haim Katz.
The announcement came late at night as Likud ministers and lawmakers are locked in an increasingly fierce battle over their positions on the party’s slate ahead of the next Knesset election.
Netanyahu has already been granted eight reserved slots on the Likud list, at positions 3, 5, 9, 11, 15, 18, 26 and 29.
The central question now occupying senior party figures is whether the three ministers will be placed within those eight slots or whether Netanyahu is seeking three additional guaranteed positions beyond the quota already approved for him.
According to the scenario being discussed within Likud, Netanyahu intends to seek the three positions in addition to the eight slots he has already received.
Such a move is expected to trigger opposition and anger among Likud ministers and lawmakers because every additional reserved place further reduces the number of realistic positions available to candidates competing in the party primaries.
Likud’s official statement said: “The Likud Secretariat will be asked to approve, alongside the prime minister’s reserved slots, the placement of Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar, Defense Minister Israel Katz and Likud Central Committee chairman Minister Haim Katz on the Likud slate, in addition to the new reserved candidates the prime minister is expected to bring.”
Minister Haim Katz
(Photo: Ido Erez)
The party said Israel Katz would be given a guaranteed place following a ruling last week by the Likud tribunal, which determined that reserving a position for the defense minister would allow him to focus on Israel’s security needs rather than engage in internal political campaigning.
Sa’ar, meanwhile, is to receive a spot under the agreement merging his party with Likud, while Haim Katz is to be placed on the slate because of his role as chairman of the Likud Central Committee.
The wording of the Likud statement, particularly its reference to the three ministers being placed “alongside the prime minister’s reserved slots” and “in addition to the new reserved candidates the prime minister is expected to bring,” strengthens the possibility that their positions will not come out of Netanyahu’s existing quota of eight.
Still, the exact placement has not yet been finalized, and the ultimate number of slots on the Likud slate that will not be determined in the primaries remains unclear.
Israel Katz reservation draws surprise
The most surprising of the three moves is the decision to reserve a place for Defense Minister Israel Katz.
The plan had not been known in advance to Likud ministers and lawmakers and was not included among the eight positions previously approved for Netanyahu.
Last week, the Likud tribunal ruled that Katz should be allowed a reserved position, arguing that doing so would enable him to concentrate on security matters rather than the political battle surrounding the primaries.
Katz is already regarded as one of Likud’s most senior figures and had been expected to compete for a place near the top of the party slate.
Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar
(Photo: Yair Sagi)
Sa’ar’s placement, by contrast, had been expected because it stems from the merger agreement between his party and Likud.
The intention to reserve a spot for Haim Katz is also not new and was first reported by ynet about a month ago.
The three moves are now being brought together for approval alongside the broad quota of reserved positions already available to Netanyahu.
The decision is expected to intensify tensions within Likud because it could further reduce the number of realistic Knesset slots left for party members competing in the primaries.
Senior Likud figures have been fighting in recent days over every position on the slate, and the possibility that three additional candidates could receive guaranteed places beyond Netanyahu’s existing eight is likely to sharpen the internal struggle even further.