First Likud MK admits defeat: "Democracy is democracy"

The first Likud MK admitted defeat this morning (Tuesday) in the primaries: Finance Committee Chairman, MK Hanoch Milwidsky, responded to the results after failing to secure a realistic spot on the party's list for the next Knesset. Milwidsky clarified that he accepts the decision of the Likud members and wished success to the candidates who were elected.

After the results of the Likud primaries became clear and the list for the next Knesset began to take shape, the first reaction arrived from one of the MKs who appear to be among those who will not return to the parliament in the next term. The Finance Committee Chairman accepted the voting results, even though they leave him at this stage outside of a realistic spot.

Milwidsky stated:

"Democracy is democracy, even when the results are less favorable to you. I want to wish great success to the team that the Likud members have chosen. Great tasks and challenges lie ahead."

With this, Milwidsky becomes the first of the incumbent MKs who remained outside the realistic spots to publicly respond to the result. In his remarks, he refrained from attacking the election process or the candidates who surpassed him, and chose to emphasize the acceptance of the members' decision.

The result is a significant disappointment for Milwidsky, who currently serves in a central role in the Knesset as Chairman of the Finance Committee. On the eve of the primaries, he even addressed the desired composition of the list and said that it requires people who will provide backing to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Milwidsky's reaction comes after primaries that brought about significant changes in the emerging composition of the Likud for the next Knesset. Alongside candidates who managed to break into the top ranks and those who entered through districts and representation guarantees, a series of incumbent ministers and MKs failed to reach the realistic spots.

Milwidsky is in this group alongside other prominent names. According to the published results, Ministers May Golan and Idit Silman, Minister Avi Dichter, and MKs Nissim Vaturi and Ariel Kallner, among others, also remained outside the spots expected to get them into the Knesset.

For Milwidsky, the significance is particularly notable due to his current status as Chairman of one of the central and influential committees in the Knesset. However, in the Likud primaries, even incumbent MKs are required to compete again for the trust of the members – and this time, the result he received is not sufficient, based on the emerging composition, to guarantee his place in the next Knesset.