Feiglin Criticizes Tibi Over Conduct at Polling Station

Zehut chairman Moshe Feiglin criticized MK Ahmad Tibi on October 27 over footage of an argument with polling-station staff. In a statement published during election day, Feiglin said Tibi had failed to show proper respect for the people administering the vote. His criticism focused on the treatment of polling committee workers and the responsibilities that come with public office. In his own post, Feiglin said he had watched the footage and heard Tibi repeatedly telling people to sit down. He argued that impatience did not excuse a Knesset member from respecting those running the democratic process. Feiglin wrote: “Polling committee staff do not work for you.” He said an elected position did not give its holder permission to shout at people, humiliate them or intimidate them. In an accompanying response video, Feiglin alleged that Tibi wanted a recording that would humiliate Jewish polling officials and present him as the person in charge. That was Feiglin's interpretation of the footage. He also linked his criticism to his position on Israel's national character, describing the country as the Jewish people's national homeland. He said non-Jews who accepted that character could enjoy individual civil rights, while rejecting a separate national homeland within Israel.