Supreme Court Allows Ra’am, Joint List and Ofer Cassif to Run in Election (Updated)
Updates
- October 2, 2026: Israel’s Supreme Court on Friday allowed Ra’am, the Joint List and MK Ofer Cassif to contest elections to the 26th Knesset, overturning Central Elections Committee disqualifications. The nine-justice panel unanimously reinstated both lists and approved Cassif’s candidacy by seven votes to two, with Justices David Mintz and Alex Stein dissenting. The majority found that the evidence did not meet the strict legal threshold required to disqualify Cassif or the lists. All nine justices condemned Cassif’s statements and actions; the dissenting judges considered his conduct sufficient to establish support for armed struggle against Israel.
Original report
Israel’s Central Elections Committee voted 18 to 5, with one abstention, to disqualify Ra’am from the October 27 Knesset election. The vote followed requests filed by Likud, Otzma Yehudit and the Choosing Life forum of bereaved families. Ra’am is led by MK Mansour Abbas. The decision does not take effect automatically: the Supreme Court must review the committee’s ruling before the party can be barred from the ballot. The committee voted separately earlier in the day on petitions concerning Ofer Cassif and Sami Abu Shehadeh.
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