Kadima to Peres: Government led by Livni will unite Israel

Setting in motion the process of forming Israel's next government, President Shimon Peres met Wednesday night with representatives of the Kadima party, to hear their views on whom to charge with the task of building a coalition.

Kadima representatives recommended party leader Tzipi Livni for the task, saying that her moderate views could represent a unity government that would strech from the center to the fringes, both to right and to the left.

Under Israeli law, the president has to meet with all factions that won Knesset seats in an election, to hear who they recommend for the premiership. He can then task any legislator with the job, but gives the nod to the one who has the best chance of forming a stable coalition.

The election gave Livni's Kadima 28 of the 120 Knesset seats, one seat more than Benjamin Netanyahu's Likud Party, but the right-wing bloc, more likely to join a coalition headed by Likud, gained substantially more votes than the left, making Netanyahu more likely to be able to recruit the necessary 61 MK majority to his coalition.

Finance Minister Roni Bar-On said after the meeting that if Livni were to form a coalition, it would have the greatest maneuverability because "she doesn't have this or that commitment that could influence her decisions."

Bar-On was asked whether the possibility of a rotation government was raised during the meeting, to which he replied "the word rotation, as far as I recall, was not mentioned in the room, but toward the end of the session I told the president that if no decision is made by the end of the week, he should use the method I know from the legal realm, meaning taking both sides into his chambers until white smoke rises."

Transportation Minister Shaul Mofaz said that the fact that the president had called Kadima into his office before Likud speaks for itself. "In light of the challenges currently facing Israel, the state needs a unity government led by Kadima, because such a government will unite all the sectors of the [Israeli] people and will represent everyone's desires."

"In light of Peres' vast experience and familiarity with the political system, this is not just a technical move," Mofaz continued, "he needs to be attentive to the people's wishes and desires, and decide to task Livni with forming the government."

The Kadima faction head in the outgoing parliament MK Yoel Hasson said after the meeting with Peres that he got the impression that the president understands the gravity of the decision he has to make. "There is no doubt that he will be the responsible adult in the group," Hasson said. He declined to say whether Kadima was in contact with Avigdor Lieberman's Yisrael Beiteinu, who won 15 seats in the election and could prove to be kingmaker.

Immediately following the meeting with Kadima, Peres invited Likud representatives to his office for additional consultations. MKs Gideon Sa'ar, Silvan Shalom, Yuval Steinitz and Dan Meridor recommended that Likud Chairman Netanyahu form the next government.

During the meeting, Sa'ar said that "there is no arithmetic option for Livni to form a government. The decision is crucial because in today's security and economic climate it is important to form a government quickly and to choose the person who will be able to form a government quickly."

"There is only one candidate who can form a government and that is Netanyahu," Sa'ar concluded.

MK Shalom told Peres that "this decision is part of the democratic process that will determine the face of Israel for the duration of the coming years. We come here with a distinct feeling that the people expressed their wishes in a clear and decisive manner."

Former minister Dan Meridor said that "we need a government. The state is operating without a budget and there isn't a lot of time. For the sake of the issue, speedy action is required."

Peres receives official election results, still no clear winner

Earlier Wednesday, Peres said he was eager to begin the process of choosing the man or woman to form a new government. He was speaking after receiving the official results of last week's election from Justice Eliezer Rivlin.

Peres has scheduled meetings with political parties in the new parliament at a fast pace starting Wednesday evening, evidence that he wants to pick a prime minister-designate soon.

"I am sure an atmosphere of cooperation will emerge, with the good of the country uppermost on everyone's mind," Peres said.

Coalition negotiations among the parties could take as long as six weeks after Peres makes his choice.

On Wednesday evening, the ultra-Orthodox party United Torah Judaism announced that they plan to recommend to the president that Netanyahu be tasked with forming a coalition.

After handing Peres the official election results, Justice Rivlin said that the committee he heads approved the final tally Wednesday afternoon, adding that the election was "relatively straight forward, moderate, and there were almost no questions or appeals regarding its results. There is a consensus on the purity and integrity of the election results."

Peres acknowledged the difficult task before him, saying that he will have no preconceived notions regarding "anyone who will be chosen to serve as prime minister. Those who have been elected in the past were chosen in order to serve the future, and I pray that those who are chosen this time around will do so as well."