After topping the Likud primary by a wide margin, Eli Cohen backs Netanyahu for another term, eyes the Finance Ministry and argues that results, not rhetoric, will decide the election; 'From the devastation of Oct. 7, we have become the strongest power in the Middle East'Yuval Karni|While much of the discussion surrounding last week's Likud primaries focused on reserved slots, political hit lists, recommended-candidate slates and speculation about party heavyweights Amir Ohana, Tally Gotliv, Yariv Levin and Shlomo Karhi, Energy Minister Eli Cohen preferred to run a campaign under the radar. It paid off.GalleryEnergy Minister Eli Cohen (Photo: Alex Kolomoisky)“I’m certainly happy with the result,” Cohen said in his first interview since his primary victory. “Likud members are smart people who love the country. They chose a strong slate of people who get things done. And I want to tell you that in every ministry I’ve served in, I’ve proven myself through actions and delivered results for the public. The word ‘give up’ doesn’t exist for me.”How does your victory square with the populist, combative rhetoric within Likud?
“Today, people want to choose someone who gets things done, not someone who only talks. And thank God, succeeding time after time speaks for itself. During the primaries, I didn’t campaign against anyone. I focused mainly on what I had done: how I managed to break the Israel Electric Corp.’s monopoly, how I ensured that the energy sector functioned flawlessly, how I reached a gas deal with Egypt and how I secured visa-free travel to the United States.”So you cracked the formula for beating populism and shouting.
