Parties scramble to organize primaries

Marciano: Labor should "copy" current list; Kadima recommends council stop admitting new members.

By SHELLY PAZ
MarcianoYoram 224 (photo credit: Ariel Jerozolimski [file])
MarcianoYoram 224
(photo credit: Ariel Jerozolimski [file])
This week's announcement of general elections means that parties will not only be making feverish preparations for national campaigns, but they will also face difficult and costly internal primaries. The general elections will be held on February 10, it was decided Tuesday. The 17th Knesset will complete its activities by next Tuesday, and Kadima, Labor and Likud must complete their primary procedures and draw up their MK lists before the real war begins. All the big parties have promised answers as soon as possible. Transportation Minister Shaul Mofaz's supporters have reportedly demanded that his position as new Kadima leader Tzipi Livni's No. 2 be guaranteed ahead of the party's primary. Likud chairman Binyamin Netanyahu, meanwhile, met with his party's Knesset members on Tuesday to discuss how the next MK list should be chosen. Labor MK Yoram Marciano, however, has suggested canceling his party's primary and "copying" the current list of Labor MKs to the 18th Knesset, to save time and money. He brought up the idea in Monday's faction meeting. "Even if the party goes for a primary, it will be busy with internal conflicts and ultimately the list will look almost the same as it does today, with minor changes," Marciano told The Jerusalem Post. "I myself am ranked 18th, so this is not a personal interest, but for the good of the party." A Teleseker poll in Monday's Ma'ariv predicted that Labor would fall from 19 seats to 11. When questioned about the young generation of Labor members who might want to run for the Knesset, Marciano suggested that they understand there was currently little chance for them to start a political career with the Labor Party. "The young members should keep their money and wait a little longer," he said. Marciano's proposal upset many Labor activists, who called it undemocratic. Minister-without-Portfolio Ami Ayalon firmly rejected the suggestion to cancel the primary. "The best system for electing the party's representatives in the Knesset is the primary, where all party members can once in a while express their opinions regarding their representatives in the Knesset," Ayalon's spokesman, Kobi Alon, told the Post. The Labor faction spokesman said the party would reach an agreement before the weekend. The party will have to decide among several options: a primary, with or without opening the list to new candidates; elections by the party's central committee; a new list composed by a special committee; "copying" the current list; or some combination of these. A senior source in the party said Marciano's initiative would not pass. "It would be outrageous if this idea were accepted. It would tell the public that the Labor Party is falling apart, and along with the unflattering polls, that doesn't look good," the source said. The Kadima faction has decided to recommend that its council, which will meet on Thursday, stop admitting new party members by Friday to prepare for the primary. "Kadima's goal in the next elections is to defeat Netanyahu and the Likud, and to reach it we must complete the internal preparations as soon as possible," faction chairman Yoel Hasson said. He added that a date for the primary would be set before the weekend. As for the demand by Mofaz's supporters to secure his place as No. 2 on the Knesset candidate list, Livni's people said that "Tzipi doesn't deal with portfolios for the day after the elections. She hasn't decided anything yet and definitely hasn't promised anything. This refers to everyone, including Mofaz." Mofaz's assistant said he had not demanded anything. Meanwhile, the Likud faces several questions, including how many people to include on its candidate's list, whether to secure the places of certain Likud MKs and, if so, whether to have this decision approved by the party's central committee, and how many candidates each of the 100,000 registered Likud members can vote for in the primary.