Polls opened at 8:30 a.m. Tuesday in the second and last round of voting for a new Labor party leader. Incumbent chairman Defense Minister Amir Peretz and two other contenders lost in the first round of two weeks ago.
Most polls have estimated that former Prime Minister Ehud Barak has pulled slightly ahead of freshman Knesset Member Ami Ayalon, who has emphasized the need for social welfare programs. Barak ran a "race of silence," leaning on his previous experience and declining to make major policy statements except to say that Prime Minister Ehud Olmert must be replaced.
Most polls have estimated that former Prime Minister Ehud Barak has pulled slightly ahead of freshman Knesset Member Ami Ayalon, who has emphasized the need for social welfare programs. Barak ran a "race of silence," leaning on his previous experience and declining to make major policy statements except to say that Prime Minister Ehud Olmert must be replaced.