Likud Urges Election Committee Chair to Revoke Ban on Reporting Voter Turnout Data

The Likud party has urgently appealed to Noam Solberg, chairman of the Central Elections Committee, demanding the reversal of his recent decision prohibiting party representatives from reporting which voters have arrived at polling stations on election day. The decision, made on August 4, 2026, was justified by concerns over voter privacy, but Likud argues it constitutes an unprecedented change to election procedures "mid-game" and undermines the democratic process by restricting parties' ability to encourage voter turnout.

Likud's appeal, submitted through attorney Ilan Bombach, emphasizes that the ruling contradicts decades of established practice and relies on unsubstantiated claims. The party insists the decision should either be canceled or postponed so it does not apply to the upcoming 26th Knesset elections. Prior to the official appeal, Likud MK Avichai Boaron proposed a new mechanism whereby the Elections Committee itself would collect and distribute real-time voter turnout data to all parties, ensuring privacy and fairness without leaving data collection to party representatives at polling stations.

Solberg defended his ruling by stating that election laws do not authorize party representatives to share voter turnout information for partisan purposes, and that using such data to mobilize voters conflicts with the intended use of the information. He clarified that his decision reflects current legal standards and does not preclude future regulatory changes.

Separately, Likud succeeded in a petition against a campaign video by former IDF Chief of Staff Gadi Eizenkot, which featured soldiers in uniform and AI-generated combat scenes. The committee ruled that the video improperly used public military assets, ordering Eizenkot to remove it from all social media accounts and pay Likud 5,000 shekels in legal costs. Eizenkot's party argued the AI usage did not constitute misuse of public property, but the committee rejected this defense.

The controversy highlights tensions over election transparency, voter privacy, and campaign conduct ahead of Israel's next parliamentary elections.