Israeli Defense Minister Amir Peretz, the leader of the Labor Party, is trailing in polls for the party primary. Polls published Monday by three major Israeli dailies showed former security chief Ami Ayalon and former Prime Minister Ehud Barak in a tight race for the Labor leadership.
Peretz is a former trade union boss whose public standing was hurt by his perceived mishandling of the Lebanon war. Should Ayalon win the May 28 primary, he may decide against taking the defense portfolio and even leave Prime Minister Ehud Olmert’s coalition government, potentially triggering early national elections.
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