The Central Elections Committee voted Wednesday to disqualify the Ra'am party from the 26th Knesset elections, with 18 members in favor, 5 opposed, and one abstention. i24NEWS reports that a judge on the committee voted to disqualify a candidate for the first time in 20 years. The decision and reasoning will be submitted to the Supreme Court for review.
The Central Elections Committee voted Wednesday afternoon to disqualify the Ra'am party from the 26th Knesset elections. The vote tally: 18 in favor of disqualification, 5 opposed, one abstention. The committee's reasoning will be forwarded to the Supreme Court for review, as required by law.
The vote came during a session in which the committee also considered disqualification of other candidates and parties. Earlier Wednesday, the committee disqualified MK Ofer Cassif and Balad chairman Sami Abu Shehadeh, as The Zioneer reported. i24NEWS noted that, for the first time in 20 years, a judge on the committee voted to disqualify a Knesset candidate.
Committee chairman Justice Yitzhak Sohlberg opened the discussions by stating that a single statement is insufficient for disqualification – "a critical mass is required," according to i24NEWS. The Ra'am party, led by Mansour Abbas, was a member of the coalition in the outgoing Knesset. The disqualification decision is expected to be appealed to the Supreme Court, which will have the final say before the election campaign proceeds.
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