Israeli Politicsupdated 46m ago2 min read
Likud Accuses Arab Parties Of Election Theft; Central Elections Committee Rejects Systematic Tampering
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Election officials and police rejected Likud’s claims of a stolen election. Authorities say no evidence of foreign interference or widespread fraud influencing Arab vote.
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Fraud claims after election
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Likud Party accused Arab parties of stealing the election in the state of Israel after Tuesday’s vote, and the party said the elections were stolen through “serious criminal offences of bribery, threats, violence, forgeries, and the use of prohibited software to mobilise voters.” Likud also said it was handing “hundreds of testimonies and pieces of evidence regarding election theft in many Arab polling stations” to investigators, including what it claimed were “thousands of envelopes” containing cash and ballot slips for Ra’am.
Israel’s Central Elections Committee said Tuesday it had seen no indications of systematic tampering with ballot papers and was addressing individual complaints as they arose. Talal al-Krenawi, the mayor of the Bedouin town of Rahat, rejected Likud’s fraud allegations Wednesday, calling them “disgusting… lies and falsehoods” and saying, “We voted properly, with the ballot papers and identity cards.”
Police and election officials push back
Israel Police rejected Likud’s claims that the election had been “stolen” by the Arab parties, and the police said there was “no investigative- or intelligence-based evidence to support the allegations.” Acting Central Elections Committee director general Dean Livne told lawmakers that “The Knesset elections were conducted lawfully,” and he said “there is no basis for allegations of systematic violations of election integrity.”
The Shin Bet clarified that its probe of foreign interference in the vote was “limited in scope” and that it was not based on information supplied by any political actor. Justice Noam Sohlberg’s request to the Shin Bet centered on “serious suspicions” of improper influence through funding provided by foreign entities acting against Israeli interests, and the Times of Israel reported that the information had not yet been verified.
Foreign interference probe and aftermath
Central Elections Committee chair Justice Noam Sohlberg asked the Shin Bet to investigate “serious suspicions” of foreign interference in Tuesday’s election, and he wrote that “given they involve foreign entities — there is an obligation to investigate them thoroughly.” Qatar’s advisor to the Prime Minister and official spokesperson for the Foreign Ministry Majed Al Ansari denied the allegations, saying, “We categorically deny allegations that Qatar has interfered in Israeli elections,” and adding that “Qatar should not be used as a scapegoat for the political failures of certain Israeli politicians.”
Yashar leader Gadi Eisenkot warned that Netanyahu was trying to undermine the vote after losing it, and Eisenkot said, “The days when Netanyahu used state institutions against the Israeli interest and for his own personal needs are over.” The political fight over legitimacy continued as the Central Elections Committee estimated that as many as 480,000 double envelopes would be counted, while the i24NEWS live blog said the coalition bloc held 53 mandates, the opposition bloc held 48, and Arab parties held 19.