Shaul Mofaz moved from the position of Defense Minister and received the Transport ministry in the new Cabinet installed on 4 May 2006. In 2008, with Israel's then prime minister, Ehud Olmert, being pressured to resign due to corruption charges, Mofaz announced that he would run for the leadership of the Kadima party. On 5 August 2008, Mofaz officially entered the race to be leader of Kadima. That same day he received a blessing by Shas spiritual leader Rabbi Ovadia Yosef. On 17 September 2008, he lost the Kadima party election, losing to Tzipi Livni for the spot of the Prime Minister
Eti Livni Eti Livni Eti Livni (, born 1 June 1948) is a former Israeli politician who served as a member of the Knesset for Shinui and the Secular Faction between 2003 and 2006. In the 1999 elections Livni was placed tenth on the Shinui list, but missed out on a seat when they won only six mandates. For the 2003 elections she was placed 12th on the party's list, and entered the Knesset when the party won 15 seats. During her first term, she chaired the Committee on the Status of Women and was a Deputy Speaker of the Knesset. Along