According to party election exit polls, Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni is the new leader of Kadima. Livni now has 42 days to form a coalition government. If she fails in that effort, national elections will follow three months later. Recent polls indicate that if a general election was held today, Likud Chairman Benjamin Netanyahu would win.

As foreign minister, Livni was the lead negotiator who worked with the Palestinians to develop a peace agreement by the end of this year. Her direct involvement in offering territorial concessions in exchange for peace may prove to be a sticking point with one of Prime Minister Olmert’s coalition partners. Already, ultra-Orthodox Shas Chairman Eli Yishai has stated, “If Livni wants a government, she needs to comply with our demands”—one of which is for Jerusalem to remain the undivided capital of Israel.

If negotiations with Shas break down, Livni may be forced to court a party on the left. For more on the Israeli elections, go here and here.