Election Committee Rejects Bid to Bar Religious Zionism–Zehut List in 21-3 Vote

The Central Elections Committee, chaired by Supreme Court Deputy President Noam Sohlberg, on September 24 rejected the request to bar the Religious Zionism–Zehut list from running for the 26th Knesset. Three members voted in favor and 21 against, with no abstentions, and the decision and its reasoning will be sent to the Supreme Court for review. The Zulat Institute, joined by former defense minister Moshe Ya'alon, former ministers Yael German and Omer Bar-Lev and others, had argued that the list negates Israel's democratic character and incites racism. Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara opposed disqualification, finding no "critical mass" of evidence.