Labor Party leader Amir Peretz
צילום: אלי אלגרט
Tensions high as Labor polls close
Labor party members cast primaries ballots, results expected Wednesday morning amid talk of political backroom deals; more than 60 percent of eligible voters cast ballots
Labor party primaries polls closed Tuesday evening as more than 60 percent of the 117,000 eligible voters cast their ballots at some 354 voting stations across the nation.
In light of Labor's unenviable position in the polls, the struggle for the list's big spots has been an endless source of political backroom deals.
Two youthful candidates are fighting it out for first place on the list: Isaac Herzog and Ophir Pines-Paz. Both have waged intensive campaigns in recent weeks all over the country, and have met party activists from the south to the north.
Another real battle will take place between Binyamin Ben Eliezer, who is striving for third place, and former Shin Bet head Ami Ayalon, who is thought to be associated with Labor Chairman Amir Peretz.
Will Barak return?
A frequent topic of conversation in Labor hallways has been the "huge deal" as it is known in the party between Binyamin Ben Eliezer and Amir Peretz. According to an agreement between the two, Peretz's people will support Ben Eliezer, while the latter will work to support the election of candidates supported by Peretz across the country.
Some have said that the alliance between the two is designed to block a possible attempt to return Ehud Barak into the picture by granting him a high party list, as many hope and expect will happen.
While Barak's aides are pessimistic over such a prospect, they do not rule it out. "The ball is in Amir's (Peretz) hands," said one.
Labor is divided over Peretz's management of the party. Some believe that Peretz has not yet decided how to act, and that he fears that Barak's entrance would be interpreted as a weakness on his part due to his poor poll showing.
Others claims that Peretz did intend on cooperating with Barak, and that he will initiate such a move after the primaries.
