Likud list to go to Supreme Court

Judge of Tel Aviv District Court stops Likud recount, giving Hotovely 20th spot on list over Dichter.

By GIL STERN STERN HOFFMAN, DANIEL CLINTON
Tzipi Hotovely visits Temple Mount (photo credit: MARC ISRAEL SELLEM/THE JERUSALEM POST)
Tzipi Hotovely visits Temple Mount
(photo credit: MARC ISRAEL SELLEM/THE JERUSALEM POST)
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu set his Likud party’s primary for December 31 because he wanted to have his Knesset slate ready before all the other parties in order to focus on the March 17 election, but the list is still not ready just ahead of Thursday’s deadline to submit candidates to the central elections committee at the Knesset.
Netanyahu has not yet selected the two candidates reserved for his choice who will be 11th and 23rd on the list. Jerusalem Post columnist Caroline Glick, who is being considered for one of the slots, had not received an answer as of late Monday night.
The fate of the much contested 20th slot also has not been decided. The Supreme Court will be asked to make a decision by Thursday.
The Tel Aviv District Court accepted a petition filed by Deputy Science, Technology and Transportation Minister Tzipi Hotovely Monday ordering the halt of a recount of votes in the primary for her and former public security minister Avi Dichter.
The recount began Monday morning after an internal Likud court ruled in Dichter’s favor, but the district court said the Likud court was not authorized to approve a recount.
Dichter said Monday he plans to appeal the decision to the Supreme Court. Dichter said 85 percent of the votes had been counted when the District Court ordered the halt.
“The count should be completed and justice should be brought to light once and for all,” Dichter said. “It is unclear why Hotovely, who requested a recount just two weeks ago, is now preventing it.”
Whoever loses the 20th slot will be placed 26th on the list, after slots reserved for candidates from regions and minorities. Polls show Likud winning as many as 25 seats to the 20 predicted by a poll broadcast Monday night on Channel 2, which found that Labor would beat Likud by three seats.