How did Ariel Sharon lead Likud to victory in the 2003 parliamentary election?

Ariel Sharon led the Likud party to a sweeping victory in the January 2003 parliamentary elections by positioning himself against the platform of his Labour opponent, Amram Mitzna. During the campaign, Sharon fiercely opposed Mitzna’s proposal for a withdrawal from Israeli settlements in the Gaza Strip.1

This electoral success followed the collapse of Sharon's previous coalition government in October 2002, when the Israel Labour Party withdrew its support. While Sharon later revised his stance on the Gaza settlements—eventually implementing a disengagement plan that involved the removal of settlers and soldiers—his firm opposition to such concessions during the 2003 campaign was a defining feature of his platform that resonated with voters at the time.12