Tzipi Livni "the second most powerful politician in Israel". Livni is the second woman in Israel to hold the post of foreign minister, after Golda Meir. In 2007, she was included in the "Time" 100 Most Influential People in the World. "Forbes" ranked her the 40th most powerful woman in the world in 2006, 39th in 2007, and 52nd in 2008. Livni became the first Israeli cabinet minister to explicitly differentiate Palestinian guerrilla attacks against Israeli military targets from terrorist attacks against civilians. In an interview on the US television news show "Nightline", recorded on 28 March 2006, Livni stated, "Somebody who
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