Netanyahu Leans Toward Likud Primaries With Reserved Candidate Slots

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is leaning toward full Likud primaries combined with leader-reserved candidate positions, after supporting an appointments-committee alternative over the weekend, according to reports published Sunday afternoon. The party's Constitution Committee is scheduled to consider both methods at 20:00: full-list primaries with reserved positions, or an appointments committee selecting ministers and MKs while district representatives face primaries. Reports agree that internal pressure from Likud lawmakers pushed Netanyahu toward primaries. The number and placement of reserved positions remain unsettled, with estimates ranging from seven to ten and proposals placing several near the top of the slate.