Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was said to
be pleased with the Likud's new list, Mati Tuchfeld writes in Yisrael Hayom.
Netanyahu's close advisers said on Tuesday that the Likud's new list reflects the public's desire and may prevent people from voting for more right-wing parties such as the New National Religious Party, chaired by newly elected Naftali Bennett. The advisers said there is no concern over voters leaving the party for left-wing parties such as Yair Lapid's Yesh Atid ("There is a Future"), Labor, or Hatnuah ("The Movement"), which was announced by former Kadima Chairwoman Tzipi Livni this week.Party members said on Tuesday that the new list was varied more than they expected it to be and included more Sephardic and young candidates than they believed it would. "Every time the Likud holds primaries the headlines say the next day that the party has moved to the Right. It has become a ritual that no one is concerned about," a Likud minister said.
