JNS.org – In a secret vote on Wednesday, the Likud Central Committee approved Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s proposal to move the party’s primaries up to Dec. 31, in addition to giving the prime minister the right to place two candidates of his choice on the Likud list. Sixty-five percent of the committee’s members supported Netanyahu’s initiatives.

In the wake of Wednesday’s vote, there is a growing belief that former Likud minister Gideon Sa’ar will not challenge Netanyahu for the party’s leadership position in the primaries.

“Likud members outright rejected the unprecedented media campaign that promoted anyone running against Netanyahu,” the prime minister’s primaries campaign team said in a statement. “[Likud members] expressed sweeping confidence in the prime minister.”