Gabbay: Livni's Hatnua barely passes Knesset threshold on its own
Labor leader says there will be no 'gifts' of reserved spots, 'not even to Hatnua,' in Zionist Union's Knesset list next elections, raising questions about the alliance between his party and Hatnua; also admits his own comments led to drop in support.
Labor leader Avi Gabbay made several statements Monday that raised questions as to whether his party's Zionist Union alliance with Tzipi Livni's Haynua party will survive until the next elections.
During a Labor faction meeting at the Knesset, Gabbay presented MKs with the results to polls he had commissioned, which showed that if left to stand on its own, Hatnua would barely pass the election threshold to be elected for Knesset, according to faction sources.
The price for reserved spots on the list will be higher come the next elections, Gabbay said. "We will not give away gifts with reserved sports—not even to Hatnua," he said.
The Labor party chief further expounded that according to polls, if Livni separated from the Labor party, it will be able to steal away one mandate from the Likud.
The polls further showed that the Zionist Union's number of predicted seats in the Knesset has dropped from its current 24 to 15-17. "We're seven mandates away from Yesh Atid," he said.
Surprisingly, Gabbay admitted that the drop in support for the Zionist Union stemmed from his own recent remarks, which raised the ire of the Left wing electorate. Gabbay said during a conference recently that the Left forgot what it means to be Jewish, referencing a campaign statement from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in the 1990s.
"This is where things stand at the moment," Gabbay said. "There are several reasons for our drop in polls, including my own statements," he told his MKs.
Labor party MKs utilized the open dialogue in their party's faction meeting to voice their own criticism. MK Amir Peretz, for one, attacked his own chief by saying, "You're creating an anti-democratic atmosphere of a Trappist monastery."
"We're the most reticent and submissive party that ever was," Peretz accused.
MK Hilik Bar joined the fray, telling Gabbay, "The public doesn't know who you are. (You are) sometimes on the Right, sometimes on the Left."
"Avi Gabbay and others saw polls that said Hatnua scored more than seven seats, even eight," a source from within Hatnua said in response. "Focus needs to be on replacing Netanyahu and presenting a vision and policy to the public. That's the right thing to do both topically and politically."
