The 1996
Meretz
Meretz ( he, מֶרֶצ, ) is a left-wing political party in Israel. The party was formed in 1992 by the merger of Ratz, Mapam and Shinui, and was at its peak between 1992 and 1996 when it had 12 seats. It currently has no seats in the Knesset ...
leadership election
A leadership election is a political contest held in various countries by which the members of a political party determine who will be the leader of their party.
Generally, any political party can determine its own rules governing how and when a l ...
was held on 22 October 1996. It saw the election of
Yossi Sarid
Yossi Sarid ( he, יוסי שריד; 24 October 1940 – 4 December 2015) was an Israeli politician and news commentator. He served as a member of the Knesset for the Alignment, Ratz and Meretz between 1974 and 2006. A former Minister of ...
to succeed
Shulamit Aloni
Shulamit Aloni ( he, שולמית אלוני; 29 December 1928 – 24 January 2014) was an Israeli politician. She founded the Ratz party, was leader of the Meretz party, Leader of the Opposition from 1988 to 1990, and served as Minister of Ed ...
as the party's leader.
This was the first leadership election in the party's history.
The election was held by a vote of Meretz' Party Council.
Incumbent party leader Aloni had announced her retirement after Sarid had announced his intent to challenge her for party leadership. This came amid disputes between the party's top brass.
Background
Meretz was formed prior to the
1992 Israeli legislative election
Elections for the 13th Knesset were held in Israel on 23 June 1992. The election resulted in the formation of a Labor government, led by Yitzhak Rabin, helped by the failure of several small right wing parties to pass the electoral threshold. Vot ...
by an alliance of three
left-wing
Left-wing politics describes the range of political ideologies that support and seek to achieve social equality and egalitarianism, often in opposition to social hierarchy. Left-wing politics typically involve a concern for those in soci ...
political parties,
Ratz,
Mapam
Mapam ( he, מַפָּ״ם, an acronym for , ) was a left-wing political party in Israel. The party is one of the ancestors of the modern-day Meretz party.
History
Mapam was formed by a January 1948 merger of the kibbutz-based Hashomer Hatz ...
and
Shinui
Shinui ( he, שִׁינּוּי, lit. ''Change'') was a Zionist, secular, and anti-clerical free market liberal party and political movement in Israel. The party twice became the third-largest in the Knesset, but both occasions were followed by a ...
, and was initially led by Ratz's chairwoman and long-time
Knesset
The Knesset ( he, הַכְּנֶסֶת ; "gathering" or "assembly") is the unicameral legislature of Israel. As the supreme state body, the Knesset is sovereign and thus has complete control of the entirety of the Israeli government (with ...
member
Shulamit Aloni
Shulamit Aloni ( he, שולמית אלוני; 29 December 1928 – 24 January 2014) was an Israeli politician. She founded the Ratz party, was leader of the Meretz party, Leader of the Opposition from 1988 to 1990, and served as Minister of Ed ...
. The party proceeded to win twelve seats in the election, making it the third-largest in the Knesset. Meretz became the major coalition partner of
Yitzhak Rabin
Yitzhak Rabin (; he, יִצְחָק רַבִּין, ; 1 March 1922 – 4 November 1995) was an Israeli politician, statesman and general. He was the fifth Prime Minister of Israel, serving two terms in office, 1974–77, and from 1992 until h ...
's
Labor Party, helping pave the way for the
Oslo Accords
The Oslo Accords are a pair of agreements between Israel and the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO): the Oslo I Accord, signed in Washington, D.C., in 1993; .
The party also picked up several ministerial portfolios; Aloni was made Minister of Education, then
Minister of Communications and
Science and Technology, while other party members including
Amnon Rubinstein
Amnon Rubinstein ( he, אמנון רובינשטיין, born 5 September 1931) is an Israeli legal scholar, politician, and columnist. A member of the Knesset between 1977 and 2002, he served in several ministerial positions. He is currently dean ...
,
Yossi Sarid
Yossi Sarid ( he, יוסי שריד; 24 October 1940 – 4 December 2015) was an Israeli politician and news commentator. He served as a member of the Knesset for the Alignment, Ratz and Meretz between 1974 and 2006. A former Minister of ...
and
Yair Tzaban received additional portfolios.
References
{{reflist
Meretz leadership election
Meretz leadership
Meretz leadership elections