Likud MK Gideon Sa'ar caused fury among Benjamin Netanyahu's loyalists on Tuesday as he petitioned to have cameras installed at the polling stations when he takes on the prime minister for the leadership of the party next week.
The demand for cameras echoes a demand made by Netanyahu's camp ahead of the last general elections in September, when Likud wanted cameras in polling stations in the Arab community. The Likud said the request was aimed at countering voter fraud while its critics branded it a racist effort to suppress the Arab vote.
"It was only three months ago that we appealed to the Knesset to put cameras in polling stations during the second round of elections," Sa'ar told Ynet on Tuesday. "Then Netanyahu was all for it, claiming that the opposition is trying to fix the elections."
Sa'ar kicked off his leadership campaign on Monday, taking a jab at the beleaguered Netanyahu and saying the caretaker PM had no chance to form a coalition.
Netanyahu's supporters in the party, among them Culture Minister Miri Regev and Foreign Minister Israel Katz, lambasted Sa'ar on Tuesday for running against the prime minister, which the MK scoffed at.
"They're trying to brand anyone who dares to offer an alternative," he said. "I'm even more right wing than Netanyahu."
Sa'ar also hit back at Regev for saying that, "We don't take kindly to traitors in the Likud."
"I've been representing the Likud much longer than Mrs. Regev," he said. "I'm expecting the prime minister to publicly disavow Regev's terminology."
He added: "You shouldn't use this kind of language lightly as it might seep [into public discourse]. I don't believe other members of Likud are buying her rhetoric."
Katz, meanwhile, accused Sa'ar on Tuesday of trying to ride "a wave of hatred" against the prime minister.
But, the long-standing Netanyahu ally told Ynet, that hate only actually exists on the left and Sa'ar will face the consequences of his actions after the Dec. 26 vote.
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MK Miri Regev speaks at a rally in Tel Aviv for Benjamin Netanyahu after his indictment
(Photo: Moti Kimchi)
Regev told Army Radio that Sa'ar's push for the primaries was a betrayal.
Sa'ar sought to undermine Netanyahu, she said, and fired a shot "inside the armored personnel carrier" that is the Likud.