Knesset member Eli Dayan resigned last week as chairman of both the Labor Party and the Labor coalition.
The move expected after Dayan defied party discipline a week earlier by voting for a specific amendment to the Economic Arrangements Bill, which represents a key portion of Israel’s budget process.
Dayan had unsuccessfully tried to have an extended school day included in the state budget. When his proposal was rejected, he submitted an amendment to the Economic Arrangements Bill, despite his party’s opposition.
Dayan’s defiant action highlighted the Labor Party’s recent internal strife, with members wondering how the party could be kept in line if its leadership was not doing so.
Dayan’s critics accused him of being overcome by “primaries fever” and ditching party decisions in order to advance his own political interests before next year’s elections.
In announcing his resignation at a Jan. 24 Labor caucus meeting, Dayan had said he felt that he should remain true to the commitment which he and the party had made to education.
Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin said he respected Dayan’s decision. According to some observers, Dayan’s resignation saved Rabin from having to launch a political battle for Dayan’s removal.
After Dayan announced his resignation, Labor Knesset member Raanan Cohen announced his candidacy for the posts vacated by Dayan.
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