Yitzhak Shamir struggled on several fronts in order to retain the possibility of the premiership – to be vacated by Shimon Peres in October, according to the terms of the rotation agreement. In mid-January, a new Liberal Centre party was formed by former members of the Liberal party, now integrated into the Likud. Led by Tel Aviv mayor, Shlomo Lahat, and Jewish Agency head, Leon Dulzin, its appeal was to the middle class with calls for lower income tax and religious pluralism.