Israel’s High Court of Justice on Thursday issued an order nisi in petitions challenging the election of attorney Michael Ravilo as state comptroller, after claims that the secrecy of the Knesset vote was violated. The judges also recommended that the Knesset hold the vote again and ordered it to respond to that proposal by Sunday.
The hearing was held before Deputy Chief Justice Noam Sohlberg, and Justices Gila Kanfy-Steinitz and Ruth Ronen. The petitions argue that some lawmakers photographed or displayed their ballots during the election, potentially undermining the principle of secret voting and the validity of the entire process. During the hearing, Kanfy-Steinitz said, “It is hard to say that these cases did not violate the secrecy principle. There was some kind of violation here,” referring to reports that MKs showed how they voted.
The judges also questioned whether statements made before the repeat vote may have affected how lawmakers acted. Former Supreme Court Justice Yosef Elron, who ran against Ravilo, joined the petitioners and argued that the repeat vote in the Knesset was unlawful. He asked the court to freeze Ravilo’s entry into office and order new elections.
Knesset representative attorney Yitzhak Bart said no proof was presented that lawmakers were instructed to film or document their votes, but added that if such an instruction had been given it would have been illegal and could have harmed the process. The judges pressed him on whether the number of documented cases points to a broader systemic problem. The hearing also touched on alleged conflict of interest, after petitioners said Ravilo had represented Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Likud, and the government in many legal proceedings. The judges asked whether there are precedents for disqualifying a candidate because of extensive professional ties. During the session, MK Tali Gottlieb repeatedly interrupted the proceedings and was removed from the courtroom after a warning from Sohlberg.
