Tel-Chai Nation

The Likud held its party primaries for the Knesset list Thursday night, and you could say that opponents of the expulsion are the leading victors, led by a fresh newcomer, Moshe Kahlon.

"Tonight we saw that Likud is the only party in which there is actually democracy," chairman Binyamin Netanyahu told the Central Committee Thursday night. "In Kadima there is no democracy, in Shinui there is no democracy - only in Likud." 91 percent of Likud Central Committee members turned out to elect their candidates.

The election of both Natan Sharansky and Yuli Edelstein is expected to help the Likud win the always-sought-after Russian swing vote - both men were refuseniks in the former Soviet Union.

Yep, it was quite a success that night.

On the other hand, look what happened with Shinui, which is pretty much on its way out:

Meanwhile, the leadership of the anti-religious Shinui Party, unhappy with the results of their primaries, has decided to reject the results by splitting apart from Shinui, taking with it a majority of the MKs and thereby legally retaining the party name.

Party chairman Yosef Lapid was reelected party chairman by a very small margin over challenger Itzik Gilad - a result of recent polls showing Lapid to be a liability to the party rather than an asset. MK Avraham Poraz failed to win the number two slot and immediately announced his resignation from the Party, starting the domino process of resignations that brought with it Shinui MKs Ilan Shalgi, Meli Polishuk-Bloch, Ettie Livni and Ronnie Brizon. They claim they will form a new list on their own without the burden of a central committee, in order to "represent the real Shinui," according to Army Radio.

Shinui is expected to drop from 15 Knesset seats to less than 5, with many candidates worried that the party may not even pass the Knesset threshold, as voters migrate to the Kadima and Labor parties. A poll early in the week said the party could garner as many as seven seats without Lapid at the top. "The only gimmick I can pull out of the hat at the moment is to have Lapid hospitalized and if I go into a coma," Poraz told reporters.

Good grief, is that the most cynical thing I ever heard! Shinui's "leaders" have really made fools of themselves. Bye-bye, Shinui!

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Labels: Knesset