2012 Kadima leadership election claim in an interview with Haaretz and admitted mistakes with handling the party several years ago. Mofaz supporters accused Livni of encouraging Bat Yam mayor Shlomo Lahiani to join the race in order to split the Sefardi vote. Livni denied the accusation. Lahiani said his family did not want him to run, but he wanted to change the priorities of Israel. He was confident that he could beat Mofaz and Livni, and even take Kadima to victory over Likud. However, Lahiani ultimately decided not to run. Originally rejecting calls for him to withdraw from the race, Dichter dropped out five
Kadima However, it was not immediately adopted, and the party was initially named "National Responsibility" (Hebrew: , "Ahrayaut Leumit"), which was proposed by Justice Minister Tzipi Livni and enthusiastically endorsed by Reuven Adler, Sharon's close confidante and strategy adviser. Although "National Responsibility" was regarded as provisional, subsequent tests conducted with focus groups proved it much more popular than "Kadima". "National Responsibility" seemed certain to become permanent. Surprisingly, however, it was announced on 24 November 2005 that the party had finally registered under the name "Kadima". The title "Kadima" has symbolic meaning for many Israelis who associate it with the battle-charge of