After Shaffir defects, Shmuli says he won’t abandon Labor
MK says he respects party leader’s decision not to merge with Meretz and Ehud Barak’s Israel Democratic Party, despite his own support for left-wing alliance
Labor MK Itzik Shmuli on Sunday said he was sticking with the venerable center-left party for the upcoming elections and did not intend to jump ship in the wake of fellow party member Stav Shaffir’s high-profile defection to the new Democratic Camp alliance.
“The Labor Party is my home and even when there are disagreements and arguments, I remain committed and won’t abandon it during difficult moments,” Shmuli said in a series of tweets.
Labor’s No. 2 lawmaker said that while he would have preferred that the party join an alliance of left-wing factions, party leader Amir Peretz — “who was chosen democratically” by Labor members — opted to go in a different direction, joining forces with Orly Levy-Abekasis’s right-wing Gesher party, which had failed to win enough votes to enter the Knesset in April’s elections.
Shmuli also appeared to escalate his spat with ex-Labor MK Stav Shaffir, saying his decision was between fighting for Labor or “a promising and comfortable personal exit elsewhere.”
Shmuli and Shaffir had a high-profile feud in late June when both ran in the party’s July 2 leadership primary, which was ultimately won by returning defector Peretz.
Tensions ramped up last week after Shaffir left Labor to help form the new Democratic Camp alliance with Meretz and Ehud Barak’s Israel Democratic Party.
Shaffir on Saturday urged Shmuli to unite Labor with the new faction to strengthen the left-wing camp ahead of the September elections.
“Even though I was hurt by [Shmuli’s] behavior and lies, we’re not playing these games now. I call on Shmuli and the entire Labor party to join us,” she said in an Army Radio interview.
Shmuli responded to Shaffir’s call with a resounding “good riddance,” and told his former colleague to “stop this obsession.”
“Throughout the campaign you spread the libel and lie that my call for alliances [with other parties] was meant to ensure my place in the Knesset, and not some higher purpose… And who then left the party in its darkest hour for a cushy job? The idea was to join an alliance as a party, not to make a personal exit,” he charged. “Keep your opinions to yourself. Goodbye and good riddance.”
The dispute highlights the party’s dismal political state as it struggles to avoid being erased in the September elections.
Polls from the past week have shown Labor winning just 5-7 Knesset seats, perilously close to the 3.9-seat threshold for entering the legislature.
The six seats it picked up in April marked a record low for the storied faction, whose previous incarnations led Israel for nearly 30 years after the country’s founding.
Facing growing scrutiny after the Democratic Camp alliance was announced, and despite vows he would not join with the far-left, Peretz reportedly began meeting with leaders in the new left-wing alliance late last week to discuss a potential tie-up. According to Channel 12 news, Peretz met with Meretz MK Issawi Frej and IDP member Noa Rothman last week, telling them he would consider joining the Democratic Camp if it would help the center-left secure a majority in the 120-seat Knesset.
Meanwhile on Sunday, Kulanu MK Roy Folkman announced he would not run in the upcoming Knesset elections.
In a Facebook post, Folkman said had been considering retiring from politics since fresh elections were called earlier this year and Kulanu merged with Likud.
“I haven’t fulfilled my ambition to… contribute and I’m convinced that I’ll find my way to work on behalf of the public in the future as well,” he wrote in the post.
The final Knesset slates must be presented to the Central Elections Committee by August 1.
