MK Golan Announces Bid for Meretz Leadership

Deputy Economy Minister Yair Golan announced on Wednesday that he plans to challenge Nitzan Horowitz for the leadership of the Meretz party in the upcoming party primaries.

The party plans to hold primaries in the coming weeks, but has yet to announce the date on which its internal vote will take place.

Golan, a retired IDF major general who in his last role served as deputy Chief of Staff, told reporters that he seeks to head the party with the aim of “fighting the messianic and corrupt right. I am appalled by Jews who are full of hatred and religious fanaticism and who beat Arabs just because they are Arabs,” he said.

As for a potential joint Knesset bid with the Labor party – a notion so far discounted by current Meretz leader Horowitz and Labor leader Merav Michaeli – Golan said, “I haven’t abandoned the idea of a wide left-wing camp.”

Meanwhile, Meretz MK Issawi Frej announced on Tuesday that he will not run in the upcoming election, opting to retire from politics.

Frej, who serves as the regional cooperation minister, has been part of the Meretz slate for over a decade.

Frej made the announcement during an interview on Channel 12 and later on his social media page. He also called on Nitzan Horowitz to resign and endorsed former party chief Environmental Protection Minister Tamar Zandberg for the role.

Zandberg has yet to declare her intentions in the matter.