As part of a major move to unite Meretz and various protest groups, former IDF deputy chief of staff and former MK Yair Golan announced Monday he was entering the Labor leadership race. The party's elections will take place in May, and Golan – who has received much praise for his action as a retired general to save lives during the Oct. 7 attack when he drove to the Gaza to combat the Hamas terrorists despite not being in active duty – hopes to ride his popularity to win over the voters of what was once the largest and most important party in Israel.
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"We have two missions: to topple the government as soon as possible and to unite the camp," Yair Golan's office said. "Unfortunately, [outgoing Labor chairperson] Merav Michaeli has imposed on us internal primaries in Labor and opposes uniting the camp. After we win, we will unite along the way and establish a new political framework that will combine the entire liberal-democratic bloc under a new entity."
As mentioned, the announcement comes after Labor Party chairwoman MK Merav Michaeli refused proposals to promote unity among left-wing parties and hold joint primaries for leadership of the bloc. According to Labor MKs, the unity issue will become the central question in the upcoming primaries.
For several weeks, MK Gilad Kariv has sought to promote the unification of the bloc's parties but Michaeli and her people have reportedly refused. Given that the party's charter states that the chairwoman controls what goes to the party's central committee, the proposal did not come up.
"The call of the hour is to unite forces on the Zionist Left and present a clear alternative to the nationalist Right and wavering center," Kariv said. "I intend to continue working to promote the unification of forces from within the Labor Party, despite the inappropriate attempt to prevent an open and democratic discussion on the subject."
"The State of Israel is in great turmoil and in order to get out of it, we need elections that will bring our people new leadership. The Labor Party has an important role in rehabilitating the State of Israel and it must get there prepared and strong," Michaeli said. "Therefore, as I promised, we are launching the party leadership elections and I invite anyone who believes in real democracy, equality and hope to join Labor and run."
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