Livni stunned as Mofaz quits politics

Defeated Kadima candidate refuses to meet winner; Labor MK: It's the beginning of the end for Kadima.

By GIL STERN STERN HOFFMAN
Mofaz 224.88 (photo credit: Ariel Jerozolimski [file])
Mofaz 224.88
(photo credit: Ariel Jerozolimski [file])
On her first day as Kadima's new leader, Tzipi Livni received a startling blow: Shaul Mofaz, whom she ended up beating in Wednesday's party primary by only 431 votes, announced that he was "taking a break" from political life. A shocked Livni tried to reach Mofaz to persuade him to reconsider, but he refused to meet with her, aides said. Mofaz, in a speech conceding the Kadima leadership race to Livni on Thursday evening at his campaign headquarters in Givatayim, said he was quitting the cabinet and the Knesset. The decision was a surprise to even his closest advisers, and the ministers and MKs who sat next to him also appeared to be stunned as he made the announcement. "The time has come for me to take a break," he said. "I want to consider my future and different ways that I can contribute to Israeli society, the state and my family. I am not requesting a position or rank in the government or the Knesset. I will remain a Kadima member and do everything in my power for the party." A source close to the minister said Mofaz believed that he had won the primary, but that the victory was stolen from him by the media and the party establishment. The source said Mofaz was especially angered by Livni's pronouncement that her "different politics" had won the race, because instead of reaching out to him in her victory speech, she continued besmirching him as a crooked politician. Mofaz's strategist, George Birnbaum, said the transportation minister had never discussed what would happen if he lost the primary race, and never mentioned that he was considering quitting. "I have worked with presidents and prime ministers around the world and there are not a lot of politicians out there like Mofaz," Birnbaum said. "Israel lost a good and decent man. But maybe soldiers are allowed to be tired after a while. After 42 years of serving the country, he deserved a break." Mofaz received praise from politicians across the political spectrum, who said they were sorry to see him go. Likud Chairman Binyamin Netanyahu called the former chief of General Staff and defense minister "a quality individual who contributed significantly to Israeli security in many years of courageous service in wars and daring operations." But Labor MK Ophir Paz-Pines called Mofaz's resignation "political hara-kiri that dealt Kadima an irrevocable blow." He expressed hope that Mofaz's departure was "the beginning of the end of Kadima." After a night filled with drama as the results came in from polling stations around the country, Mofaz - who trailed the foreign minister in television exit polls by as much as 12 percent - lost by just 1.1 percent. Final results, announced early Thursday morning, gave Livni 43.1 percent (16,936 votes), while Mofaz won 42% (16,505 votes). Interior Minister Meir Sheetrit 8.5% (3,327 votes) and Public Security Minister Avi Dichter 6.5% (2,563). The final turnout was 53.7%, or 39,872 voters. In conceding the race, Mofaz said he turned down advice he received to appeal the results because he did not want to harm the country or the party. He said he did not bear a grudge against the Kadima members who did not vote for him, the MKs who did not support him, the party officials who ran the race or the press. "I am a democrat in my soul and I know how to accept any result," he said. "I accept the decision of the voters and I wish Livni well. Even though the margin of victory in the race was tiny and the top lawyers advised me to appeal, I decided that the good of the nation comes before any personal good for myself." Mofaz's lawyer, Yehuda Weinstein, had urged Mofaz to appeal the results to protest the Kadima election committee's decision to keep polling stations open an extra half hour, the disqualification of a polling station in Rahat and the fact that media outlets began publishing exit polls predicting Livni's win 15 minutes before the polls closed. "If he had listened to me, he would have appealed," Weinstein said. "But he sees wider public and statesmanlike considerations and he made up his mind. Now it doesn't matter any more than etrogim after Succot." Despite Mofaz's decision, his ally, MK Ze'ev Elkin, announced that he would appeal the results of the race to either Kadima's internal court or a state court. Elkin blasted Kadima election committee chairman Dan Arbel for saying that he would have held a recount if the margin of victory had been one vote less. Arbel made the statement because 430 votes were disqualified in Rahat, a community known to support Mofaz, and Livni won by 431 votes. "As long as they don't do the minimum check because of one vote, I cannot see the race as over or legitimate," Elkin said. Interior Minister Meir Sheetrit also complained about the decision of the Kadima election committee to extend the voting, and that of the networks to broadcast the exit polls before the polling stations had closed. "Throughout the race, the polls dictated reality and not the other way around," Sheetrit said. "The media is to blame for handling the election in such a shallow and callow way. It wasn't democratic, and the country lost out." Livni's 1.1% margin of victory was significantly smaller than the 10% to 12% predicted by the exit polls that were broadcast. The actual results trickled in to the Tel Aviv Fairgrounds over the course of the night until the last votes were counted at 5:20 a.m. Livni won a majority in Tel Aviv, Ra'anana, Beit Shemesh, Ariel and Karnei Shomron. Mofaz was victorious in Jerusalem, Haifa, Rishon Lezion, Tiberias and Ma'aleh Adumim. Sheetrit won in the Beersheba suburb of Omer and the Druse town of Julis. Public Security Minister Avi Dichter won in Sderot and the Druse town of Hurfeish. While Livni was waiting for the results, she hosted her advisers and top activists at her Tel Aviv home. One activist said that during the tense moments when her victory was being questioned, Livni cooked French fries, quiches and cakes for her guests. Though journalists had spent the whole night awaiting Livni's arrival at the fairgrounds, she declared victory at 6:15 a.m. to a few reporters and activists outside her home. She emphasized the need for unity within Kadima and the country, and reiterated her commitment to a different kind of political atmosphere. "We have proven that there is a different kind of politics here in Kadima," Livni said. "People have engulfed me in love and it doesn't matter if they are Kadima members or not. These are the people standing behind this victory. Their hope in me gives me a responsibility that makes me approach the roles of Kadima chairwoman and prime minister with great respect." Livni reached out to all her challengers and expressed hope that she would form a new coalition as soon as possible. She met with Dichter and Sheetrit Thursday night, and will convene the faction in Petah Tikva on Friday. "For me, Avi [Dichter], Meir [Sheetrit] and Shaul [Mofaz] were rivals for a moment and this competition is over," she said. "The national mission is to bring about stability quickly. This is not only my responsibility but the responsibility of my colleagues in Kadima. "Thank you from the bottom of my heart." Jonathan Beck contributed to this report.