Kadima << kah DEE mah >> is a centrist political party in Israel. It was founded in late 2005 by Ariel Sharon, who was then prime minister, and other members of his conservative party, called Likud. They were joined by Shimon Peres and other members of the moderate Israel Labor Party. Kadima means forward in Hebrew.
In August 2005, Sharon implemented a plan to dismantle all Israeli settlements in the Gaza Strip as well as several in the West Bank. Israel had taken control of these two Palestinian territories in a 1967 war. Many Palestinians in these areas want to establish their own country, and both territories have been the site of violence over the years.
Many Likud members opposed the Gaza pullout. In response, Sharon quit Likud and formed Kadima. In January 2006, Sharon suffered a major stroke. The deputy prime minister, Ehud Olmert, became acting prime minister and head of Kadima. In March 2006 parliamentary elections, Kadima won the most seats. Olmert became prime minister in a coalition government with the Labor Party as the key partner.
Beginning in late 2006, Olmert faced multiple corruption investigations. He denied any wrongdoing. But he resigned as prime minister and head of Kadima in September 2008. Tzipi Livni replaced him as Kadima leader in September. In February 2009 parliamentary elections, Kadima maintained a slight lead over Likud, but Likud’s Benjamin Netanyahu was asked to form the new government.
Former minister of defense Shaul Mofaz became Kadima leader in March 2012. The party showed poorly in January 2013 parliamentary elections. Mofaz retired from politics in 2015, and the leaderless party did not enter elections that year.
