Israeli Supreme Court Judge Bars Reporting Voter Turnout at Polling Stations

In a significant ruling affecting ultra-Orthodox political parties in Israel, Supreme Court Judge and head of the Elections Committee, Hanan Melcer, has prohibited polling station secretaries from reporting who has already voted and who has not. This decision disrupts a longstanding practice within the ultra-Orthodox community, where real-time voter turnout updates were used as a strategy to encourage higher voter participation. The ban aims to prevent the dissemination of such information from the field during elections, potentially impacting the mobilization efforts of these parties.