Israel Election Commission: No Fraud Found in Recent Vote
Acting director Dean Livne stated the review examined all complaints thoroughly, clearing the way for formal certification of the results.
By Aiko Soto ·
Israel’s election commission announced on Wednesday that it found no fraud in last week’s parliamentary vote, a finding that challenges Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s efforts to dispute the outcome. The ruling comes as Netanyahu and his allies have repeatedly claimed without proof that Arab-led parties stole the election, potentially with foreign help.
The election results indicated that Netanyahu’s religious-nationalist bloc lost its majority in the Knesset. Concurrently, Arab-led parties achieved substantial increases in their representation. The committee issued a statement confirming that the review found no evidence of irregularities that compromised the election’s integrity or influenced its final tally.
Dean Livne, the acting director of the elections committee, explained that the investigation looked at every filed complaint individually and thoroughly. He stated that the findings provided no basis to declare the election results invalid. Livne added that the certified results, which are scheduled for official confirmation on Wednesday, accurately reflect the choices voters made at the polls.
A separate probe by the Shin Bet intelligence service into allegations of foreign interference remains active, according to a spokesperson for the elections committee. The committee noted that while potential foreign influence is a serious matter, it does not believe such interference altered the election results.
Noam Sohlberg, a Supreme Court Justice and head of the committee, spoke on Sunday about the integrity of the process. He stated, “Our position is that even if the suspicions are substantiated, this would not undermine the integrity of the electoral process or the election results as a whole.” Netanyahu’s campaign did not immediately respond to requests for comment regarding the decision.
President Isaac Herzog will begin meeting with elected parties on Wednesday following the receipt of certified results. After two days of consultations, Herzog will select a candidate he believes can best form a coalition government. The likely contenders are Netanyahu and his main rival, opposition leader Gadi Eisenkot.
Neither Netanyahu’s bloc nor Eisenkot’s alliance secured the parliamentary majority required to form a government. This situation opens the possibility of a coalition between the two rivals or between Eisenkot and certain Arab-led parties. If no government can be formed, Israel will hold a new election early next year.
