In Israel, election committee allows Ben-Gvir’s party to run — Jerusalem Post

Israel’s Central Elections Committee on September 24 rejected two petitions seeking to disqualify Otzma Yehudit, the party of National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, from the Knesset elections scheduled for October 27. Nineteen committee members voted against disqualifying the party, 10 voted in favor, and one abstained, the Jerusalem Post reports.

The Democrats party and the Zulat Equality and Human Rights Institute, together with several former senior officials, filed separate petitions against Otzma Yehudit. They argued that the party denies Israel’s democratic character and incites racism.

Arguments of the parties

The petitioners urged the committee to assess not only the party’s platform and statements, but also the actions of its representatives in power. In their view, Otzma Yehudit members have repeatedly undermined the rule of law and weakened democratic institutions. They also referred to materials which, they claimed, demonstrate systematic incitement against Arab citizens.

The party rejected the accusations, calling them a political attempt to remove it from the election. Ben-Gvir said that the Democrats were trying to “eliminate” him politically and stated that the party would continue its election campaign.

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Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara opposed the disqualification, although she described the available evidence as deeply troubling. Her representative noted that most of the statements attributed to Ben-Gvir were made long ago and had already been considered by the Supreme Court. More recent statements raise concern, but Ben-Gvir insisted that they were directed against enemies or terrorists, not against Arabs as a group.

Other committee decisions

The hearings concerned Article 7A of the Basic Law: The Knesset. It allows a party or candidate to be disqualified for denying Israel’s existence as a Jewish and democratic state, inciting racism, or supporting armed struggle against Israel.

The day before, the committee voted to disqualify the Arab lists Ra’am and the Joint List: in each case, 18 members supported the decision, five opposed it, and one abstained. It also backed the disqualification of Joint List candidate Ofer Cassif and Balad chairman Sami Abu Shehadeh. These individual decisions must be reviewed by the Supreme Court, while Ra’am and the Joint List are expected to appeal their exclusions.

The committee also did not support an attempt to remove the Religious Zionism Party from the election. Otzma Yehudit’s petition to disqualify the Democrats was rejected: two committee members voted in favor and 14 against.