Supreme Court Hears Petitions Over Knesset Vote for State Comptroller

Israel’s High Court of Justice heard petitions on Thursday challenging the Knesset’s election of attorney Michael Ravilo as state comptroller, following a contentious vote in parliament. The case was heard by Deputy Chief Justice Noam Sohlberg, Justice Gila Canfy-Steinitz and Justice Ruth Ronen.

Retired Supreme Court Justice Yosef Elron, who was also a contender for the post, joined the petitioners earlier this week and argued that the second vote in the Knesset was unlawful. He asked the court to issue an interim order freezing Ravilo’s appointment and to require a new vote by lawmakers. In a statement cited this week, Elron said he was joining the claim that the second vote in the Knesset building was illegal.

Ravilo was elected about two weeks ago after two rounds of voting. In the first round, none of the candidates reached the required majority of 61 MKs. In the second round, Ravilo received 61 votes, while Elron received 57.

The dispute began when MK Keti Shitrit said she intended to photograph her ballot behind the privacy booth, despite the vote being secret. After opposition protests, the Knesset legal adviser recommended banning phones in the ballot area, and lawmakers held a revote. Knesset Speaker Amir Ohana later said MKs could photograph themselves, but not be instructed to photograph the ballot. Deputy Foreign Minister Sharren Haskel then told N12 that coalition lawmakers had been forced to document their votes, calling it undemocratic and saying they were required to go in and photograph behind the curtain to prove how they voted.