The Labor Party’s Central Committee approved a list of 63 candidates for the June 30 Knesset elections today and the biggest surprise was the placement of a hawk, MK Shoshana Arbeli Almoslino, in the No. 2 spot after party chairman Shimon Peres. Mrs. Almoslino, a veteran of past Knessets, is considered to be a representative of Israel’s Sephardic community which voted heavily for Likud in the last elections.
Former Foreign Minister Abba Eban drew the No. 3 spot, followed by former Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin and former Minister of Commerce and Industry Haim Barlev. The Rabin camp won II places among the first 60 and expressed satisfaction.
Several new faces appeared among the first 10 on the list, thereby assured of election. They include Rafi Edri, director general of the Histadrut construction company, Shikun Ovdim; Naava Arad, secretary of Naamat, Histadrut’s women’s organization; and former Chief of Staff Mordechai Gur. But Labor found no place for an Arab candidate.
The list submitted by Peres with the admonition to approve it “despite the anger of all those who were not included,” was adopted by the Central Committee after two weeks of wrangling during which the party leadership came under pressure from the various factions comprising the Labor Alignment. Of the 63 candidates, 50 are believed to have a good chance of election. Mapam, the Labor Party’s Alignment partner, approved a list of eight candidates yesterday. They were placed near the top of the list in spots reserved for Mapam, Labor has 34 members of the present Knesset of whom nine will not be in the next Knesset.
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