Communications Minister Shlomo Karhi said Tuesday evening that he will not allow the Central Elections Committee's 'whimsical' ruling to be implemented, and vowed to obtain voter information by any means, according to N12 journalist Amit Segal. The decision bars party representatives from reporting who has voted.
The Central Elections Committee, chaired by Justice Solberg, announced at 17:23 Jerusalem time that party representatives at polling stations are barred from reporting who has voted, citing privacy concerns.
Communications Minister Shlomo Karhi responded at 18:20, calling the decision 'whimsical' and vowing to bypass it. 'We will not allow this whimsical ruling to be implemented in the field. We will obtain the information by any means available,' Karhi said, according to N12 journalist Amit Segal. Karhi argued the decision harms right-wing voters who are not organized in Kaplan headquarters.
The ruling drew sharp reactions from Haredi parties as well. Earlier, N12 analyst Eli Hirschman noted that the ban is a blow to Haredi parties, which rely on real-time reporting from polling stations to identify and mobilize voters who have not yet cast their ballots. Likud, Shas, and United Torah Judaism argued that the practice does not violate any law.
As The Zioneer reported earlier, the decision is expected to impact get-out-the-vote efforts in the upcoming elections. The committee's ruling comes amid ongoing debates over election integrity and voter privacy.
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