Lazimi, Kariv, Rayten win big in Labor primary race
MK Naama Lazimi finished in first place in the Labor primary and will be number two on Labor’s list after party chairwoman Merav Michaeli, the party announced on Tuesday evening. After Lazimi were MKs Gilad Kariv, Efrat Rayten, Ram Shefa and Emilie Moatti, followed by newcomer Yaya Fink, MK Ibtisam Mara’ana-Menuhin and Public Security Minister Omer Bar Lev, the party announced.
The party rules stipulate that beginning with the number two spot, the list must include an even number of men and women in a “zipper” alignment, where each man is followed by a woman and vice versa.
With an average of slightly over five mandates in the polls, this means that Moatti, Mara’anaMenuhin and Bar Lev will no longer serve in the Knesset. If the party joins a coalition and some of its members become ministers, they can then resign from the Knesset and the next in line will enter. A realistic scenario in which Labor receives two ministerial portfolios means that Moatti could eventually end up back in the Knesset, along with Fink.
Michaeli, however, has the power to choose someone in one spot between two and six on the list. If she chooses to actualize her personal choice, some of the top five will be pushed back one spot.
Fink therefore appears to be the only candidate to make the list in a realistic spot who is not an MK. Fink, 38, is a religious-Zionist, born to parents who made aliyah from the US, served as chief of staff for former opposition leader Shelly Yachimovich and finished in a respectable 12th place in
the Labor primary ahead of the March 2019 election. He is currently the head of “Darkenu,” an organization that promotes a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, a welfare, equality-based economy, religious pluralism and “safeguarding the rule of law against racism, corruption and incitement,” according to its website.
The big losers from the vote are Bar Lev and Diaspora Affairs Minister Nachman Shai. Bar Lev finished in eighth place and Shai finished in 16th place, after finishing in first and sixth, respectively, in Labor’s previous primary.
Some 22,679 out of approximately 39,500 eligible voters cast their vote, which adds up to approximately 57.4%, the party said. The ballots were cast remotely via smartphone, and four physical booths were opened in Jerusalem, Tel Aviv, Haifa and Beersheba for those who wished to vote in person. Each voter chose between five and seven candidates out of the 33 who ran.
“In the last Knesset, Labor was without a doubt the best faction in the Israeli Knesset,” Party leader and Transportation Minister Merav Michaeli said to reporters after casting her ballot in Tel Aviv.
“[This is true] of each MK individually, but also as a group the MKs worked together, in cooperation and without divisiveness or all kinds of rogue voting. Truly the most stable and effective faction” she said.
“We intend to enlarge the number of mandates we receive, such that there will undoubtedly be a winning team,” she said.
Voters seemed excited about the election.
“I’m happy that I received 200,000 SMSs in recent days. On one hand it’s irritating, but on the other it is a sign that the party is active, and that there are people who are eager to take part [in the campaign],” Assaf, a 28-year-old from Ashdod, said to The Jerusalem Post.
Assaf said he voted for current MKs Naama Lazimi, Efrat Rayten, Ibtisam Mara’ana-Menuhin and Gilad Kariv, as well as newcomers Tomer Avital and Yaya Fink. The vote for Mara’ana-Menuchin was especially important, he said.
“She represents Israeli-Palestinian and Jewish Arab partnership, both in her activity and her character and persona. She may be the only such representative since it is not clear whether Meretz will [include an Arab representative]. She is an important voice for the Palestinians, for foreign workers, people who have the smallest voice, she gives them a voice,” he said.
Michaeli sent out an email earlier on Tuesday as the voting began, titled “My Recommendations.”
“Friends, in the primary election a year-and-a-half ago, you chose the best team in the Knesset. Period. A list that together with me promoted our values in every ministry, committee and vote,” Michaeli wrote.
“We have a unified and closeknit faction that assisted me in stopping the party tradition of back-stabbing and inner fighting, which led to great party achievements while maintaining responsible and stable conduct in the Change Government!
“To my delight, all of the faction members decided to compete in the upcoming primary election and I really hope that they will all continue to lead the party’s values in the next Knesset, but will be joined with additional new representatives who chose to join us and strengthen this special team.
“My recommendations for today include 33 candidates who choose to view the Labor Party as their home, and chose to run for political office in the longest and most democratic process,” Michaeli wrote.