Jerusalem Mayor Nir Barkat is expected to announce before Passover at the end of the month that he will not stand for a third term as mayor and will instead run in the Likud party primaries.
Israel Hayom reported in November that Barkat was considering making a move to national politics, which at the time he denied.
However, Barkat has been investing money and effort to lay the groundwork for an official announcement of his Likud candidacy. As part of his activities to garner support in the party, Barkat has hosted large conferences with thousands of participants.
Barkat told Israel Hayom in a previous interview that if and when he should decide to run in the Likud primaries, he would aim for a major executive role.
In response to the latest reports, sources in the Jerusalem Municipality said, "There is no news. On Thursday, Barkat is slated to approve the largest budget in Jerusalem's history in the city council, thanks to support he enlisted from various government ministries. As he promised, after the budget is passed, he will announce his decision [about running for a third mayoral term]."
