Ehud Olmert

Term of office
April 14, 2006 - March 31, 2009
Political party  |  Kadima
Preceded by |  Ariel Sharon
Succeeded by |  Benjamin Netanyahu
Born |  September 30, 1945
Binyamina

Ehud Olmert was the previous Prime Minister of Israel[1] [2] and former leader of the Kadima party. He assumed the position after the vacancy left by Ariel Sharon's stroke. Olmert's standing plummeted after Israel's botched war in Lebanon in 2006 and the corruption probes launched by Israeli police, largely relating to his political career before he became prime minister.[3] He is the subject of at least five investigations, and while none have led to an indictment, the continuous pressure and scrutiny impacted his ability to govern and in July 2008 he announced his resignation.

Olmert's resignation came in the form of a statement that he would not be a candidate in the September 2008 Kadima party primaries, and that he would resign as prime minister to make way for the new party chief, Tzipi Livni, who would run against Likud head Benjamin Netanyahu, but eventually lost to him.

## Notes[edit]

1. ↑ (BBC)
2. ↑ Religious commentary on Olmert's resignation
3. ↑ http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/59f7ead4-5e98-11dd-b354-000077b07658.html

## See also[edit]

* Golda Meir
* Barry Goldwater
* Margherita Grassini

v • d • e

Prime Ministers of Israel

David Ben-Gurion • Moshe Sharett • David Ben-Gurion • Levi Eshkol • Golda Meir • Yitzhak Rabin • Menachem Begin • Yitzhak Shamir • Yitzhak Rabin • Shimon Peres • Benjamin Netanyahu • Ehud Barak • Ariel Sharon • Ehud Olmert • Benjamin Netanyahu