Likud cancels one-man primaries, declares Netanyahu victor

Party’s legislative body decides to save cost of holding leadership vote in which PM was the only candidate

The Likud party on Wednesday called off much-criticized leadership primaries, declaring Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu the winner without the formality of having him run as the sole candidate.

Voting had been scheduled for February 23 but the party’s internal court accepted a petition from the Likud’s comptroller against holding the elections due to cost.

By canceling the primaries, the party is estimated to have saved about NIS 4 million ($1 million).

Earlier this week the Likud Central Committee unanimously agreed to go ahead with the vote next month, even after no challengers to Netanyahu announced their candidacy by the Sunday deadline.

Some 100,000 voters would have been eligible to either cast a ballot for Netanyahu, or a blank white slip, which would be considered the same as a non vote, guaranteeing the prime minister a unanimous win in the poll.

The party had came under criticism for deciding to go ahead with the vote, which was derided as a North Korea-style farce and waste of money.

In December 2015, the party’s powerful central committee voted to approve Netanyahu’s request to move up the leadership primaries to February, which the prime minister argued would stabilize the governing coalition and its razor-thin Knesset majority.

Opponents had argued that bringing forward the primaries instead of holding them closer to the next general elections could stymie attempts by potential competitors to run against the prime minister.

A year ago, facing a shaky coalition, Netanyahu brought the leadership primaries forward; in that instance, the aim was to prevent rival Gideon Sa’ar from mounting a successful counterbid for the leadership. Sa’ar subsequently pulled out of the race.

Primaries, which are conducted by several Israeli political parties, enable party members — rather than internal committees — to elect a leader and the lists of candidates for general elections. In June, Netanyahu fought off a bid to have the power to choose candidates returned to the Likud Central Committee.

Likud lawmakers Oren Hazan and Avi Dichter mulled runs against Netanyahu in the 2016 leadership primaries, but both declined to challenge him in the end.