Former Meretz chief Zehava Galon announced on Tuesday she will be joining the race for the left-wing party's top post four years after she stepped down and took a break from political life.
Galon will be facing former IDF deputy chief of staff MK Yair Golan for the position in the party's primary election on August 23.
"I am coming back and I promise you I will do everything so that Meretz would be there, greater, more moral and stronger," Galon said in a message to suppoerters.
"Meretz needs us now — Israelis and left-wingers who believe in peace, ending the occupation, in a just society — come. Together, we will bring Meretz back, we will bring back our values and hope."
Having stepped down from politics in 2018, Galon recently said she did not intend on taking part in the upcoming primaries. However, the 66-year-old eventually changed her mind owing to pressure from within the party as opinion polls showed it barely hovers over the electoral threshold ahead of the November 1 general election.
Galon notified close associates of her decision on Monday and preparations for her campaign are already underway. Inside sources told Ynet that according to internal polling, Meretz is expected to pull six Knesset seats in the upcoming election under Galon compared to just five under Golan.
Current Meretz Chairman and Health Minister Nitzan Horowitz announced he will not seek reelection as the leader of the dovish party.
Merertz ministers Issawi Frej and Tamar Zandberg have announced they will take part in the primaries, serving a blow to the party's hopes of making it into the next Knesset.
"Zehava Galon is the only one capable of bringing our base back to Meretz," Frej told the Ynet studio in a recent interview before blasting Golan.
"Yair Golan won't bring the base back. What new audiences can army generals appeal to? There are generals in other parties as well."