1997 Israeli Labor Party leadership election

1997 Israeli Labor Party leadership election

←  1995 3 June 1997 2001  →
Turnout	69.2%
Candidate Ehud Barak Yossi Beilin Percentage 50.3% 28.5%   Candidate Shlomo Ben-Ami Efraim Sneh Percentage 14.2% 6.6%
Leader before election Shimon Peres Elected Leader Ehud Barak

The 1997 Israeli Labor Party leadership election was held on 3 June 1997 ^[1] to elect the leader of the Israeli Labor Party. It saw the election of Ehud Barak.

Background

The leadership vote took place a year after Shimon Peres' narrow defeat in the 1996 Israeli prime ministerial election. After this defeat, Peres decided to not run for reelection as party leader. ^[2]

Member of the Knesset Uzi Baram initially sought the leadership, but withdrew in December 1996 and endorsed Barak. ^{[3] [4]}

Results

69.2% of the 164,837 general party members that were eligible to vote participated in the election. ^[1]

1997 Israeli Labor Party leadership election ^[1]

Candidate		Votes	%
Ehud Barak			50.3
Yossi Beilin			28.5
Shlomo Ben-Ami			14.2
Ephraim Sneh			6.6
Voter turnout		69.2%

References

1. Kenig, Ofer (2009). "Democratizing Party Leadership Selection in Israel: A Balance Sheet". Israel Studies Forum. 24 (1): 62–81. ISSN   1557-2455. JSTOR   41805011 . Retrieved 25 January 2022.
2. "Beloved abroad, polarizing at home, Peres was the peace-making face of Israel", The Times of Israel, September 28, 2016
3. "⁨MIDEAST REPORT Uzi Baram drops bid for Labor's top spot". Jewish News of Northern California (in Hebrew). 1997-01-03. Retrieved 2025-09-13– via National Library of Israel.
4. Konig, Sarah (1996-12-31). "Baram decides not to run, backs Barak". The Jerusalem Post. p. 1. Retrieved 2025-09-13– via Internet Archive.