Election Committee Head Rules Netanyahu's Housing Promises Illegal Campaign Propaganda

The Chairman of the Central Elections Committee, Justice Noam Sohlberg, ruled on Monday that Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu, Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, and Construction and Housing Minister Haim Katz engaged in illegal election propaganda by presenting the "From Reserves to Key" housing program as a completed achievement. The program, which promised around 20,000 housing opportunities and significant discounts for reservists, was announced at a press conference on August 9th. Sohlberg found that the program was not yet approved and was presented as a finished product to serve a propaganda purpose, using public resources. The ruling came in response to petitions filed by attorney Yaron Meiri and the Israeli Democracy Watch organization, which argued that the ministers had improperly used public assets for election campaigning.

Sohlberg's decision highlighted a significant gap between the "finished product" presented by the ministers and the program's actual status, which was still in its conceptual stage and lacked formal approval. He stated that the presentation was not reliable or practical information but rather an idea "conceived and not yet brought to fruition." The judge criticized the ministers for taking credit for an achievement that had not yet materialized, noting that this served a propaganda goal and was not in line with the factual situation. He also pointed to the personal appeals made to reservists and the emphasis on the ministers' personal contributions as further evidence of campaign tactics.

In addition to the housing program announcement, Sohlberg also ruled on a separate publication by Netanyahu on the Prime Minister's Office website and his social media accounts. This publication featured a speech linking his tenure to the country's security achievements. While acknowledging that parts of the speech were informative, Sohlberg determined that other sections constituted campaign propaganda by associating military successes with Netanyahu's leadership and implying that his continued tenure would ensure future successes. He ruled that this also involved the improper use of public resources, specifically official footage from the Government Press Office (GPO).

Consequently, Sohlberg ordered the removal of the housing program publications from social media accounts. For the speech, he stipulated that its continued publication would be contingent upon payment for the use of GPO materials and the removal of the propaganda content. In his concluding remarks, Sohlberg urged Knesset members to revise the Election Law (Propaganda Methods) to better suit the current era of internet-based campaigning, rather than merely complaining about rulings.