Court Issues Injunction Halting Likud Primaries Minutes Before Voting Begins

The Lod District Court issued a temporary injunction on July 16, 2026, just minutes before the Likud party primaries were set to begin, effectively banning the vote from taking place. The primaries were scheduled to open polling stations at 12:00 PM during the Likud convention. This legal move came amid petitions challenging the legitimacy of holding the primaries.

As a result, the vote on the reserved slots (sharuyim) for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was halted. Earlier, a proposal by Knesset member David Bitan to allocate only three reserved slots to Netanyahu was not brought to a vote. Instead, only the proposal favoring Netanyahu and MK Haim Katz was presented, which would grant Netanyahu eight reserved slots and significant control over the party list.

The injunction interrupts the internal party process and leaves the question of Netanyahu’s reserved slots unresolved for now. The court’s decision came at a critical moment, just before party members could cast their ballots, signaling ongoing disputes within Likud over candidate selection and Netanyahu’s influence.