JERUSALEM – Yair Lapid, who edged closer on Sunday to forming a coalition cabinet to oust long-term premier Benjamin Netanyahu, is Israel’s centrist opposition leader and a former television anchor.
When Lapid founded his Yesh Atid (There is a Future) party in 2012, some dismissed him as the latest in a series of media stars seeking to parlay his celebrity into political success.
But Yesh Atid finished second with 17 seats in March elections, Israel’s fourth inconclusive vote in less than two years, and earlier this month Lapid was tasked to form a government after Netanyahu failed to cobble together a coalition.
On Sunday, Lapid convinced nationalist hardliner Naf…
Keep on reading: Israel’s Lapid: from TV anchor to PM hopeful