Israel: Livni Prepares to Form Coalition After Narrow Victory in Leadership Vote

Tzipi Livni, Israel's foreign minister, won a narrow election victory today to become the leader of the ruling Kadima party, putting her on track to become the country's first female prime minister in more than 30 years.

Final results released by Kadima early today put Livni on 43.1%, only just ahead of her closest rival, Shaul Mofaz, the hawkish transport minister and former army chief, who was on 42%. Exit polls had put Livni ahead by 10 points, but they appeared to have been wide of the mark. In the end her margin of victory was just 431 votes.

Livni, a former Mossad agent and lawyer, now has six weeks to put together a coalition government. If she succeeds she will become Israel's first female prime minister since Golda Meir resigned in 1974. If she fails, general elections will be held within three months.

At dawn, Livni spoke to reporters outside her Tel Aviv home. "On the level of government in Israel, we have to deal with difficult threats. The national mission ... is to create stability quickly," she said, adding: "There is economic instability." She said she would work now to form a coalition.

"Tomorrow, I will begin meeting with representatives of the factions in order to form quickly a coalition that can deal with all of these challenges that lie ahead," she said.

The two other candidates, Avi Dichter, the internal security minister, and Meir Sheetrit, the tourism minister, were a long way behind. About 74,000 Kadima members were eligible to vote, but turnout was around 54%.

Minutes after the voting ended, Livni telephoned her party workers at their Tel Aviv headquarters to congratulate them. "We fought like lions, against many opportunists, and you were simply amazing ... The good guys won," she said. "I know you did it as friends, but like me you did it because you want this to be a better place."

Later, her predecessor Ehud Olmert, the prime minister, who is expected to resign in the days ahead, phoned to congratulate her.

In the leadership contest Livni, 50, took a less hard line than Mofaz and won support for that across the party, at a time when Israeli public opinion has shifted to the right. She pitched herself as a candidate who would bring a fresh face to Israeli politics. "You can determine today what the character of Kadima will be. You can determine today if you really have had enough of old-time politics," she said as she cast her vote yesterday in Tel Aviv. "Come and vote, bring your children, and show them how you are changing the country."

Her first hurdle will be forming a coalition. Some in the labor party, which has been a key element of the Kadima-led coalition, suggested they might reconsider staying in the government, while leaders of the smaller religious Shas party made it clear they would be pressing hard for new child allowances, a key policy that appeals to their voters.

Kadima itself is only three years old - the party was formed by Ariel Sharon, then prime minister, who walked away from the Likud party and took his supporters with him, among them Livni.

Livni has been closely involved in the last year of talks with the Palestinians, acting as Israel's lead negotiator, and she is expected to continue those talks if she becomes prime minister, adopting a more dovish stance than some colleagues.

"I am really happy that Livni won because she is committed to the peace process," said the Israeli peace activist Yossi Beilin.

"I think the right thing for her to do now is to form a coalition that wants to promote peace rather than a broad government with the right."

Palestinian leaders also seemed pleased with the result. "Because Livni was immersed in the peace process, we believe she will pursue peace moves with us," said Ahmed Qureia, the chief Palestinian negotiator.

But some Israeli commentators have been unimpressed with the entire contest, talking of a lack of vision. Sima Kadmon, writing in yesterday's Yedioth Ahronoth, said she thought both Livni and Mofaz lacked charisma and leadership ability. "It is not an easy choice. Choosing between Tzipi Livni and Shaul Mofaz is like choosing between two shades of grey," she wrote.

Olmert has said he would resign after the vote, but will probably remain as a caretaker prime minister until a coalition is formed.

Yesterday's election came after he decided to step down in the face of a series of high-profile corruption investigations. He still risks being indicted for corruption in the months ahead.