Israel's elections committee bars Arab parties and left-wing candidates ahead of October vote
Central Elections Committee disqualified Ra'am, Balad leader Abu Shehadeh, and MK Ofer Cassif, though all decisions require Supreme Court approval.
What to know
- Israel's elections committee disqualified the Arab-led Ra'am party, Balad chairman Abu Shehadeh, and left-wing MK Cassif on September 23, all on grounds related to alleged rejection of Israel's Jewish character or support for armed struggle.
- All three disqualifications require Supreme Court approval to take effect; the court is expected to review them ahead of the October 27 election.
- The Attorney-General opposed Cassif's disqualification, and observers expect the Supreme Court to reverse these decisions, raising questions about the committee's democratic legitimacy.
- The petitions were filed by Netanyahu's Likud and Ben-Gvir's Otzma Yehudit parties, intensifying debate over Arab representation in Israel's electoral system.
The disqualifications represent a democratic crisis—coalition parties are knowingly flouting the law, testing whether courts alone can uphold democratic principles.
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“If it's a clear-cut case and we can expect the Supreme Court to overturn it, it means that the coalition parties that supported the ban blatantly disregarded those democratic principles. More generally, democracies where only the courts…”
Specialk3533 · reddit ↗
This is performative politics—comparable to partisan impeachments—a show with no real consequence since reversals are expected.
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“It's Israel's comparison of Trump being impeached several times by Democrat-majority congress. Part of the show.”
BrilliantTonight7074 · reddit ↗
“Israeli law does not permit barring a candidate from the Knesset simply for criticizing the army and the government for committing war crimes against Palestinians, and certainly not for supporting the establishment of a Palestinian state alongside Israel.”
Adalah legal aid center, Legal representation for Cassif · Jerusalem Post ↗
Ofer Cassif Hadash MK, Joint List candidateSami Abu Shehadeh Balad party chairman
Mansour Abbas United Arab List (Ra'am) party leaderNoam Sohlberg Central Elections Committee chairman, Deputy Supreme Court PresidentAttorney-General Gali Baharav-Miara Legal chief
How it unfolded 5 developments, newest first · click a bar or a number to jump articlespostscomments
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Critics frame disqualifications as breach of democratic principle
Reddit commenter argues that if the Supreme Court is expected to overturn the bans, the coalition parties that supported them disregarded democratic principles, and that democracies relying solely on courts to uphold those principles are at risk—particularly given the current government's track record of ignoring Supreme Court rulings.
“If it's a clear-cut case and we can expect the Supreme Court to overturn it, it means that the coalition parties that supported the ban blatantly disregarded those democratic principles.”
— Specialk3533 -
Part of being a democracy is that major political parties uphold democratic principles. If it’s a clear-cut case and we can expect the Supreme Court to overturn it, it means that the coalition parties that supported the ban blatantly disregarded those democratic principles. More generally, democracies where only the courts uphold democratic…
2 more of the top 3 · 3 posts in this stretch
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No defense it's just political theater for Likud. Red meat for the base. It'll immediately get overturned by supreme court aka checks and balances. Honestly I'm surprised to see it even posted here. Nothing burger, happens every election.
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It's Israel's comparison of Trump being impeached several times by Democrat-majority congress. Part of the show.
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Elections committee bars United Arab List (Ra'am) party from election
The Central Elections Committee voted 18-5 to bar Ra'am, led by Mansour Abbas, from running in the October 27 election. The committee accepted petitions alleging the party rejects Israel as a Jewish and democratic state, incites racism, and expresses support for armed struggle against Israel. Ra'am won five seats in the 2022 election.
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1 outlet first by Anadolu Agency, 1d ago · read ↗
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Elections committee disqualifies Balad chairman Sami Abu Shehadeh
The Central Elections Committee voted to disqualify Balad party chairman Abu Shehadeh from running, with Israeli media reporting the decision secured a large majority. The grounds cited were that he supported an armed struggle or actions of a terror organization against Israel.
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1 outlet first by Jerusalem Post, 2d ago · read ↗
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Cassif expresses confidence in Supreme Court reversal
After the committee vote, Cassif told KAN Reshet Bet that he was convinced the Supreme Court would overturn the decision, characterizing the committee as political. The Attorney-General and State Attorney had previously opposed the disqualification, finding the evidence insufficient under law.
“The stronger the power, the greater the caution required in exercising it.”
— Noam Sohlberg, CEC chairman and Deputy Supreme Court President -
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Elections committee disqualifies MK Ofer Cassif from running
The Central Elections Committee voted 19-5, with two abstentions, to bar Hadash member Ofer Cassif from the Joint List slate for the October 27 election. The committee accepted a Likud petition alleging his statements and activity negated Israel's existence as a Jewish and democratic state and demonstrated support for armed struggle by a terrorist organization.
“It is hard to believe that the Likud, when it filed this motion, genuinely thought it rested on evidence even remotely connected to the grounds for disqualification.”
— Adalah legal aid center -
1 outlet Central Elections Committee opens disqualification hearings for Balad head Sami Abu Shehadeh
first by Jerusalem Post, 2d ago
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