Israel Election Bars Arab Leader, Clears Far-Right Ministers — SkimNews
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- Sami Abu Shehadeh, leader of the Palestinian nationalist Balad party, withdrew his candidacy for the October 27 elections after the Supreme Court warned he could be disqualified, calling it "a historical catastrophe for democracy."
- The Central Elections Committee had barred Abu Shehadeh over an October 8, 2023 article calling Hamas's October 7 attacks "an important historical event," with Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara arguing the wording could amount to support for armed struggle.
- The same committee voted to bar Ofer Cassif and the two main Arab-majority lists (Joint List and Ra'am), but the Supreme Court overturned those bans — leaving Abu Shehadeh as the only Arab candidate ultimately forced out.
- Petitions to disqualify the parties of Itamar Ben-Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich were rejected by the Central Elections Committee, even though the UK, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and Norway sanctioned both ministers in 2025 for inciting violence against Palestinians.
- Ben-Gvir proposed a seven-year plan for Palestinians to leave Gaza through "voluntary emigration," while Smotrich has advocated displacement from Gaza and annexation of the occupied West Bank — proposals Netanyahu has rejected.
- Adalah documented challenges to Arab candidates or lists in elections in 2003, 2013, 2015, 2020, and 2022, noting Palestinian citizens make up roughly 20% of Israel's population but have traditionally turned out at lower rates than Jewish Israelis.
- Section 7A of Israel's Basic Law on the Knesset provides the legal grounds for disqualification, including rejecting Israel's character as a "Jewish and democratic state" or backing armed action by a designated terrorist group.
Why it matters: The disqualification of Abu Shehadeh, while Ben-Gvir and Smotrich — sanctioned by five countries for incitement — remain on the ballot, underscores the asymmetric enforcement of Section 7A. With Palestinian citizens comprising roughly 20% of Israel's population but facing repeated electoral barriers, the October 27 vote tests whether their political representation is a meaningful right or a conditional privilege.
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