The September 1999

Likud Likud ( he, הַלִּיכּוּד, HaLikud, The Consolidation), officially known as Likud – National Liberal Movement, is a major centre-right to right-wing political party in Israel. It was founded in 1973 by Menachem Begin and Ariel Sharon ...

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 2 September 1999 to elect the leader of the Likud party.

Ariel Sharon Ariel Sharon (; ; ; also known by his diminutive Arik, , born Ariel Scheinermann, ; 26 February 1928 – 11 January 2014) was an Israeli general and politician who served as the 11th Prime Minister of Israel from March 2001 until April 2006. S ...

was elected to permanently replace former leader

Benjamin Netanyahu Benjamin "Bibi" Netanyahu (; ; born 21 October 1949) is an Israeli politician who served as the ninth prime minister of Israel from 1996 to 1999 and again from 2009 to 2021. He is currently serving as Leader of the Opposition and Chairman of ...

. Sharon had been serving as interim leader since after Netanyahu led the party to defeat in the earlier

1999 Israeli general election Early general elections for both the Prime Minister and the Knesset were held in Israel on 17 May 1999 following a vote of no confidence in the government; the incumbent Likud Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, ran for re-election. This election ...

Background

The leadership election to elect a new Likud leader took place after

Israeli Labor Party The Israeli Labor Party ( he, מִפְלֶגֶת הָעֲבוֹדָה הַיִּשְׂרְאֵלִית, ), commonly known as HaAvoda ( he, הָעֲבוֹדָה, , The Labor), is a social democratic and Zionist political party in Israel. The pa ...

leader

Ehud Barak Ehud Barak ( he-a, אֵהוּד בָּרָק, Ehud_barak.ogg, link=yes, born Ehud Brog; 12 February 1942) is an Israeli general and politician who served as the tenth prime minister from 1999 to 2001. He was leader of the Labor Party until Jan ...

heavily defeated Likud leader

in the

. After the election defeat, Netanyahu resigned as party leader and

acted as interim party leader.

Candidates

Ehud Olmert Ehud Olmert (; he, אֶהוּד אוֹלְמֶרְט, ; born 30 September 1945) is an Israeli politician and lawyer. He served as the 12th Prime Minister of Israel from 2006 to 2009 and before that as a cabinet minister from 1988 to 1992 and ...

mayor of Jerusalem The Mayor of the City of Jerusalem is head of the executive branch of the political system in Jerusalem. The mayor's office administers all city services, public property, most public agencies, and enforces all city and state laws within Jerusal ...

since 1993 *

, former

minister of defense A defence minister or minister of defence is a cabinet official position in charge of a ministry of defense, which regulates the armed forces in sovereign states. The role of a defence minister varies considerably from country to country; in som ...

(1981–1983), former

minister of energy An energy minister is a position in many governments responsible for energy production and regulation, developing governmental energy policy, scientific research, and natural resources conservation. In some countries, environmental responsibilities ...

(1996–1999), former

minister of industry and trade The industry minister is a cabinet position in a government. The title may refer to the head of the governmental department that specializes in industry. This position may also be responsible for trade and employment, areas that fall under the mini ...

(1984–1990), former minister of housing and construction (1990–1993), former

Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development of the Republic of Poland ( pl, Ministerstwo Rolnictwa i Rozwoju Wsi) was formed in October 1999 from the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Economy of Poland; the ministry can trace its history ...

(1977–1981), member of the Knesset since 1974, former general *

Meir Shitrit Meir Sheetrit ( he, מאיר שטרית, born 10 October 1948) is an Israeli politician. He served as a member of the Knesset in two spells for Likud between 1981 and 1988, and again from 1992 until 2005, when he joined Kadima. He remained a Kne ...

minister of finance A finance minister is an executive or cabinet position in charge of one or more of government finances, economic policy and financial regulation. A finance minister's portfolio has a large variety of names around the world, such as "treasury", " ...

since 1998; member of the Knesset (1981–1988, and since 1992)

Electorate

The leadership election was open to the party's general membership, which, at the time, numbered at 143,871. Only roughly one-third of the eligible electorate participated in the vote.

Result

Sharon won the election, becoming the party's new leader and the new

leader of the opposition The Leader of the Opposition is a title traditionally held by the leader of the largest political party not in government, typical in countries utilizing the parliamentary system form of government. The leader of the opposition is typically se ...

in the

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 ...

. Due to his advanced age, some saw Sharon as a likely transitional leader, likely to serve only for a short time before stepping aside. But Sharon gave no indication of this being the case.

Spending violation inquiries into Sharon

Sharon would face three official inquiries into potential violations of campaign spending limits in his 1999 leadership campaign.

References

{{reflist Likud leadership 2 1999 09

Likud leadership election 1999 09 Likud leadership election 1999 09 Likud leadership election