Israeli Election Committee Finds No Evidence of Fraud

The Central Elections Committee officially announced on Wednesday that it found no evidence of election fraud or any irregularities that would alter the results. This conclusion follows a review of over 9,000 ballot boxes, conducted in preparation for submitting the official election results to Israeli President Yitzhak Herzog later today. The committee's review was prompted by claims from the Likud party alleging election theft. The head of the Shin Bet, David Zini, had requested investigations into Knesset members Mansour Abbas and Ahmad Tibi without providing evidence. The Legal Advisor to the Government, Gali Baharav-Miara, stated that the Shin Bet had not handed over investigation materials regarding suspected foreign interference in the elections to the joint police team for two days, hindering the investigation. She emphasized that citizens or elected officials should not be interrogated without justifying evidence.

The Knesset committee is expected to approve the election results at 9 AM today, after which the official results will be presented to President Herzog at 12 PM. Subsequently, Herzog will begin receiving party representatives to present their recommendations for the candidate to form the next government. The Elections Committee reported that it reviewed all submissions from parties, candidates, and the public, examining protocols from 9,069 ballot boxes and conducting in-depth reviews of voting materials where necessary, including ballots and voter registries. Approximately 250 public attorneys and committee staff participated in the six-day review to ensure the accuracy of the election results, with ballot boxes examined based on party and public requests.

Central Elections Committee Chairman, Judge Noam Sohlberg, stated that the election integrity campaign involved a radical review of an unprecedented number of ballot boxes, reflecting the committee's commitment to accurately reflecting the voters' will. Acting Director General of the Central Elections Committee, Adv. Dean Livna, noted that all submissions were reviewed and corrections were made based on recordings and voting materials. Parties will present their recommendations to the President's Residence starting today and continuing tomorrow, with the Religious Zionism party scheduled first at 5 PM, followed by Shas and Yisrael Beiteinu. Moshe Feiglin's Zehut party will also present its recommendation as an independent list.

President Herzog is expected to task the candidate who receives 61 or more recommendations with forming the government. If this threshold is not met, he will appoint the candidate he believes has the best chance of forming a coalition.