Posted on 08/14/2007 3:06:21 PM PDT by SmithL
JERUSALEM, Israel (AP) -- Benjamin Netanyahu swept the race to lead Israel's hardline Likud Party, a party official said, boosting his ambitions to reclaim the country's premiership.
Netanyahu, crowned in recent polls as the front-runner for Israel's top job, faced off against far-right West Bank settler Moshe Feiglin, who would bar Arabs from Israel's parliament and favors their emigration.
A partial tally gave Netanyahu 73 percent of the vote to Feiglin's 22 percent, party executive director Gad Arieli said. World Likud Party Chairman Danny Danon trailed with 4 percent.
While a Netanyahu victory had been all but assured, a strong Feiglin showing could have shored up Israel's extreme right and hurt Netanyahu's efforts to rehabilitate Likud after it was trounced in elections last year.
A telegenic politician and avowed hawk, the M.I.T.-educated Netanyahu speaks flawless, American-accented English. He's tough on defense issues and hands-off on the economy, and in recent months has been trying to position himself somewhere in the political center.
"It's clear that Netanyahu is a right-wing man, but a right-wing man who is always winking at the center," political commentator Hanan Crystal said Tuesday.
Netanyahu was expected to address Likud loyalists early Wednesday. But early in the polling, he made it clear that Tuesday's race was a dress rehearsal for a bigger contest.
"I call on Likud members to go vote because tonight, when we close the polls, we begin the race for prime minister," said Netanyahu, who has led Likud since late 2005, as he voted in Jerusalem.
Israeli general elections are scheduled for 2010, but could be earlier if Prime Minister Ehud Olmert's fractious coalition government falls apart, or if Olmert himself — facing low poll numbers and a series of legal woes — leaves office.
(Excerpt) Read more at sfgate.com ...
Yes. Go Benjamin....
Very interesting. I’ve always admired Mr. Netanyahu ... but he’s getting mighty old. Ariel Sharon was a great man, too ... but he got old.
*ping*
finally some hope for Israeli politics.
He ain’t THAT old!............nor I...........
Mighty old? I think he’s 57, hardly what I’d call “mighty old.”
Mighty old ? He’s 57.
Does anyone remember any left wing party being called “hard line”. Rhetorical question...
Some days, 57 sure looks old.
I consider hard line to be good. Israel (and the USA aswell, for that matter) need a hard line more than ever, if we want to win in this war.
I don’t even think he is sixty years old yet.
FYI
Good news for Israel, bad for the anti-Semites and Islamic Terrorists.
One of the worst things done regarding the Middle East was Clintler sending Dick Morris over to Israel to help Ehud Barak’s campaign, costing Bibi the premiership.
Under Bibi terrorist attacks had been quelled...they resumed after he lost the PM job. Whenever you hear Dick Morris babble again...remember his actions of pro-terrorism in the 1990’s getting involved in the Israeli election
It would be excellent for Israel. and, the US, for Bibi to return to power
Israeli general elections are scheduled for 2010, but could be earlier if Prime Minister Ehud Olmert’s fractious coalition government falls apart,
If Olmert lasts a year it will be a miracle.
Bibi my bubaleh RUN! It’s your time! Bump.
Pundits are speculating that Rove will be hired on to Netanyahu campaign.
“mighty old”? You must be thinking of someone else. Bibi is quite vigorous and youthful for his years.
I was on some liberal blogs earlier. I don’t know if all you guys know this, but liberals would rather support Iran than support Israel. In fact, the blog deleted my posts when I said that Iran’s leader wants the destruction of israel. They deleted my posts where I quoted Mamoud Ahmadinejad saying he wanted to kill zionists. Liberals are a dangerous group of people.
Well, he’ll be 58 in October. My father is a decade older than he is and doesn’t have but a few strands of gray hair, virtually unnoticeable.
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