Israeli Politicsupdated 54m ago2 min read
Archive photo · 17 September 2019Likud Seeks Voting-Hours Extension as Solberg Weighs Request After 55.7% Turnout
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Likud petitioned to extend voting hours beyond 10 p.m. amid 55.7% turnout at 16:00. Central Election Committee rejected the extension despite high turnout.
Likud seeks longer voting
Benjamin Netanyahu’s Likud submitted a request to extend voting hours beyond the scheduled 10 pm closing time Tuesday, as turnout reached 55.7% by 4 pm, the highest recorded for that hour since 1973. Justice Noam Solberg, the Central Elections Committee chairman, was set to decide on the request, and the committee clarified that anyone arriving at a polling station by 10 pm would be allowed to vote even if they cast a ballot after that time.
Gadi Eisenkot’s Yashar party said it strongly opposes the extension, arguing that no exceptional circumstances justified extending voting hours and describing the move as a continuation of "the lies Netanyahu has been spreading since the morning hours." Otzma Yehudit joined the petition, citing "congestion and unusual wait times at polling stations," while polling stations opened at 7 am local time and Israel held its first general election since the start of its war in Gaza in October 2023.
Committee rejects extension
The Central Election Committee rejected Likud’s request to extend voting hours in the Knesset elections, deciding not to prolong the voting day beyond ten o’clock at night despite the high turnout. The committee said its decision was limited to the current phase and that it would reevaluate later in light of media reports about high turnout and an increase in participation rates at polling stations.
Yashar opposed the extension and said, "No exceptional incident occurred that justified honoring this request," while the dispute continued as voters faced long lines and the day was described as tense. Netanyahu urged Israelis to vote “the right way” while casting his ballot in Jerusalem, and Gadi Eisenkot urged voters to replace what he called the "worst government" in the country’s history.
Integrity claims and turnout
Likud and allies framed the extension push around congestion, with attorney Ilan Bombach warning that "prolonged waiting times could prevent citizens from casting their ballots before polling stations close." Yashar countered that the request was intended to lay the groundwork for allegations challenging election integrity, saying, "No exceptional event has occurred that would justify approving the request."
France 24 reported that Shas and Amcha Yisrael seconded Likud’s call to extend voting by one hour until 11pm local time, while David Khalfa said turnout in Likud strongholds was "notably lower" than the national average. The Central Elections Committee reported that 55.7% of eligible voters had cast their ballots by 4:00 p.m., and NewsDigitales said the figure corresponded to 4,085,075 citizens and surpassed by 8.2 points what was recorded at the same time in 2022.