Tzipi Livni the evils. Following the 2009 elections in which Livni's Kadima won the most seats, but could not form a government, she took the party into opposition, becoming Israel's first female leader of the opposition. After an internal Foreign Ministry document stated that some European Union countries were considering freezing a planned upgrade in relations with Israel, Livni, as opposition leader, wrote in the message addressed to EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana, the EU's external relations commissioner Benita Ferrero-Waldner, and the EU's current council president, Czech foreign minister Karel Schwarzenberg: "You all know my commitment to peace between Israel and
Tzipi Livni Livni and Shaul Mofaz emerged as the main rivals for the leadership. Livni won the Kadima leadership election by a margin of just 431 votes (1%). Palestinian peace negotiators were reportedly pleased with the result. As the new leader of the ruling party, Livni became prime-minister designate. Upon declaring victory, she stated "the national responsibility (bestowed) by the public brings me to approach this job with great reverence." On 21 September 2008, Olmert formally resigned in a letter submitted to president Shimon Peres, and the following day Peres formally asked Livni to form a new government. Livni faced tough negotiations