Israeli Election Committee to Hear Disqualification Pleas

The Central Elections Committee has announced the dates for hearings concerning the disqualification of candidates and lists for the 26th Knesset. The proceedings, chaired by Justice Noam Sohlberg, will take place on Wednesday and Thursday, September 23-24, 2026, beginning at 9:00 AM daily in the Knesset auditorium. These discussions will be broadcast live on the committee's platforms and via the Knesset Channel.

At the heart of the hearings are three requests to disqualify the Ra'am party list, submitted by Otzma Yehudit, Likud, and the "Bocharim Ba'Chaim" (Voters for Life) Forum. Conversely, two requests have been filed to disqualify the Otzma Yehudit list, one by "Zo L'hadar" (For Dignity and Human Rights) and another by the Democrats, founded by the Labor movement. Otzma Yehudit has also requested the disqualification of the Democrats list, led by Yair Golan, and separately, the disqualification of Sami Abu Shehadeh.

Further disqualification requests include one by "Zo L'hadar" targeting the Religious Zionism list, headed by Bezalel Smotrich, and the Identity list, led by Moshe Feiglin. The "Orot Ha'shachar" (Light of Dawn) party has asked to disqualify Balad. The Likud party has submitted a request to disqualify the Joint List and its member Ofer Cassif.

The committee noted that comprehensive information regarding these disqualification requests is available on its website. Media teams wishing to cover the hearings must coordinate in advance with the Elections Committee spokesperson, including those with standing accreditation.