Tzipi Livni was declared the apparent winner of the race for prime minister of Israel on Thursday, Feb. 12, after three days of deliberation.
Livni, foreign minister of Israel and leader of the Kadima Party, has come out on top with 28 parliamentary seats. Her rival from the Likud Party, Binyamin Netanyahu, is close behind with 27, Haaretz reported.
Her victory may have been helped by her appeal to young voters. According to Griff Witte of The Washington Post, throughout her campaign Livni focused on gaining the support of young voters by presenting herself as the fresh alternative to the hard-nosed political style of Netanyahu.
Along the way in the election process, young people in Israel were able to express themselves and ask questions to candidates by posting videos on YouTube Israel, according to the Jerusalem Post. A broad array of videos represented voters in many communities in Israel. In fact the number of queries (more than 250) surpassed the amount submitted by American voters to the U.S. candidates on YouTube in the last presidential election, the Post also mentioned.
But even with much participation and the looks of a definitive winner, the Israeli prime minister will ultimately be chosen by the current president, Shimon Peres. Peres will consult Parliament in his decision to ceremonially appoint one of the candidates. The results will become official next Wednesday, said Haaretz.
Now the pressure is on Livni and Netanyahu, who must race to win the loyalty of smaller less popular parties, such as third-place candidate Avigdor Lieberman, in order to form a solid coalition in Parliament. These coalitions will then consult the president and determine which candidate gets the appointment.
Michael Singh, associate fellow at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy and former senior director for Middle East affairs on the National Security Council, says that Livni, a politically centrist candidate, can be counted on to push for peace talks between Israelis and Palestinians. “Livni campaigned on the premise that she would pursue peace. She has certainly indicated that she thinks there is a window of opportunity for the peace process,” he said.
In the event that Netanyahu may form a stronger coalition of parties and therefore receive the appointment from Peres, Singh still thinks the peace process will be upheld. “Netanyahu is interested in peace,” he said of the right-wing candidate. “Whoever becomes prime minister will want the peace process advanced. Whoever is prime minister will want to deliver in that aspect.”

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