Tzipi Livni child, Livni was a member of the Betar youth movement and played basketball for Elitzur Tel Aviv. Growing up in an Israel dominated by the Labour Party, Livni says she felt marginalized, believing that the establishment had minimized her parents' contribution to Israel's founding. Despite the hard-line image of the Irgun, she says her parents had respect for the Arabs and acted only against the British army, not civilians. During the 1984 Likud primaries, her father, who had served in the Knesset for Herut and Likud as a moderate, did not campaign for a seat in the Knesset, and urged
Kadima On 30 November 2005, former Prime Minister Shimon Peres left the Labor Party after more than 60 years with the party, and announced he would join Kadima to help Sharon pursue peace with the Palestinians. In the immediate aftermath of Sharon's illnesses, there was speculation that Peres might be chosen to take over as leader of Kadima. One poll suggested the party would win 42 seats in the March 2006 elections with Peres as leader compared to 40 if it were led by Ehud Olmert. Most senior Kadima leaders, however, were former members of Likud and indicated their support for