Likud Calls Off Primary Vote, Declares Netanyahu Winner

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu found himself in a bitter election fight in recent days to decide the leader of his party -- even though he was the only candidate.

Netanyahu pushed for an early primary vote for his Likud party, less than a year after general elections, in what analysts say was a maneuver to clear out potential rivals.

But since he was the only contender, opponents harshly criticized the plan to hold the costly primary for the rightwing party's 100,000 members, calling it essentially a coronation for the politically savvy premier.

On Wednesday, the party called off the vote and declared Netanyahu the winner.

"He made sure that he is the only candidate," said Gayil Talshir, a political scientist at Hebrew University. "He wanted to make sure that he is the only one -- that he is going to be the head of the Likud ahead of the next elections."

The early primary was the result of political gamesmanship within the Likud and reflected Netanyahu's strategy as he looks ahead to the next general election, due in 2019 at the latest, analysts say.

The 66-year-old has shown himself to be a shrewd political operator. He has been in the prime minister's office for a total of nearly a decade -- fast approaching revered founding father David Ben-Gurion's 13 years.

But the U.S.-educated Netanyahu can also be divisive, and he is not without potential challengers from within his party.

Welfare Minister Haim Katz, who has been aligned with Netanyahu rivals, won a vote to become chairman of Likud's powerful central committee in late December.

Netanyahu at the same time pushed for approval of a February 23 primary -- less than a year after general elections held in March 2015.

- 'Ludicrous' spending? -

Analysts called it a move by Netanyahu to prevent the committee undermining his bid for another term.

The winner of the primary -- declared to be Netanyahu on Wednesday -- will in theory be locked in as the Likud's candidate for prime minister in the next general elections.

The tight timeframe before the primary vote meant it was unlikely challengers would be able to mount a credible campaign against him.

When the deadline for candidates arrived Sunday, Netanyahu was confirmed as the only person in the race.

That led to questions over whether the party should push ahead with the vote at an estimated cost of about four million shekels ($1 million, 935,000 euros) or simply declare Netanyahu the winner, particularly when turnout was likely to be low.

"This is one of the most ludicrous ways to spend four million shekels from the state coffers," columnist Ben Caspit wrote in Israeli newspaper Maariv.

But there were also been reports that Netanyahu preferred a vote be held to ensure his legitimacy cannot be challenged.

"If he's nominated and not elected, then two years from now some contenders can say: 'Well, you were nominated; you were not elected. Let's have primaries,'" said Bar-Ilan University political scientist Shmuel Sandler.

Caspit and others argued that voters should at least be allowed to cast ballots "for" or "against" Netanyahu if an election were held, rather than turning in blank ones that count for nothing if they oppose him.

Such critics in Israel's rough-and-tumble political scene even went as far as to compare his moves to that of a tin-pot dictator.

- 'A brand name' -

In pushing for the early primary, Netanyahu said the party must be prepared for all possibilities, with the premier heading a coalition with only a one-seat majority in parliament.

But some analysts say it fits into a longer-term strategy of keeping rivals at bay and possibly luring others who have left the party back into the fold to broaden the Likud.

It comes at a time when opinion polls have not been particularly kind to Netanyahu, who has faced criticism over his government's failure to halt a wave of Palestinian knife, gun and car-ramming attacks that began in October.

His wife Sara has also been questioned in an investigation into allegations that the couple used public funds on purchases and repairs for their private home. They have dismissed the probe as a smear campaign.

In a poll released in recent days, around 32 percent said they were satisfied with Netanyahu's job performance.

But the Likud finished firmly ahead of its left-wing rivals from the Zionist Union in March elections, and Netanyahu holds a nationwide stature that opponents would have trouble overcoming for now, analysts say.

"They have a brand name," Sandler said of the Likud and its leader.