Israeli Supreme Court Suspends Michael Rebilto's Appointment as State Comptroller

The Israeli Supreme Court has issued an interim injunction freezing Michael Rebilto's appointment as State Comptroller until a final ruling is made in the ongoing legal proceedings. This decision comes as the current State Comptroller, Matanyahu Englman, nears the end of his term. Last week, the court had already issued a conditional order following petitions after the Knesset refused to hold a repeat vote as recommended by the judges. It appears that a ruling compelling the Knesset to conduct the repeat vote will be issued in the coming days.

On Sunday, the Supreme Court held a second hearing on the petitions. The Knesset's legal representative, Attorney Yitzhak Bart, argued that since there is no explicit prohibition against taking selfies in the ballot box during secret voting, such actions cannot be deemed a voting flaw. He stated that any defect must be clear beforehand and that invalidating a vote based on retrospective findings of a selfie is unwarranted. Bart emphasized that there was no fundamental flaw in the vote and even if there were, judicial restraint is necessary given the Knesset's legislative role and the extremity of invalidating votes.

Bart also contended that there is no concrete evidence that Knesset members were instructed to photograph themselves in the ballot box, noting the high evidentiary standard required. Attorney Ilan Bombach, representing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the Likud faction, described the court's intervention as an extraordinary interference in the Knesset's internal voting procedures. He criticized retired Judge Elron for not filing the petition himself despite being the direct affected party and highlighted that Elron had previously ruled that simply joining as a respondent is insufficient. Bombach asserted there is no evidentiary basis for the claims made.