Israel’s Supreme Court has overturned an election panel’s ban on Arab parties contesting parliamentary elections scheduled for October 27, stating that the decision did not meet legal requirements for exclusion, according to Israeli media. The justices ruled unanimously on Friday to reverse the Central Elections Committee’s disqualification of the two main Arab-majority political lists: Ra’am, also known as the United Arab List, and the Joint List, which includes Hadash, Ta’al, and Balad. This ruling allows Palestinian citizens of Israel, who represent approximately 20 percent of the population, to participate in the elections after critics accused the committee of applying double standards.
Additionally, the court voted 7-2 to reinstate Ofer Cassif, a Jewish member of the Knesset from the Arab-Jewish Hadash party, who is known for his criticism of Israel’s policies towards Palestinians. The dissenting justices argued that Cassif supports “armed struggle against the state of Israel,” which they claimed justified his disqualification.
In September, the elections committee had voted to disqualify the Joint List and Ra’am as parties, along with Cassif and Sami Abu Shehadeh, the head of the Balad party, as individuals. Historically, the Supreme Court has frequently overruled the committee's disqualifications. However, during a hearing on Thursday, Supreme Court President Yitzhak Amit indicated that a majority of justices favored disqualifying Abu Shehadeh, giving him until Friday to withdraw from the election, which he ultimately did.
National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, an ally of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, led the effort to bar Abu Shehadeh following an article he wrote after the Hamas attacks on October 7, 2023, in which Abu Shehadeh referred to the attack as “an important historical event.” He has denied supporting the attacks.
Balad stated that a court-ordered removal would have serious implications for the political landscape in Israel, potentially setting a precedent for the removal of Arab candidates. The Ra’am party made history in the 2021 election by becoming the first Arab party to join an Israeli government, participating in a coalition that briefly ousted Netanyahu. In the upcoming election, Ra’am is also fielding a Jewish Zionist candidate, Yoav Segalovitz, who gained popularity in Arab communities for his efforts to reduce crime.
The September vote by the election committee faced criticism for perceived double standards, as Palestinian-led parties were excluded while far-right parties remained on the ballot. Following the Supreme Court's ruling, Abu Shehadeh expressed that he withdrew due to a lack of alternatives, stating that the original disqualifications were unacceptable and represented a significant threat to democracy in Israel.