Arab List Files Election Complaint Over Alleged Vote Sabotage

The United Arab List (UAL) has filed a formal complaint with the Central Elections Committee, alleging a "systematic campaign" to obstruct its voters. The party claims this campaign includes arresting its activists, and hiding or destroying its ballots in several Arab towns. The UAL stated that police arrested several prominent activists in the Negev desert early on Tuesday, including Siyyaf Abu Riyash from Rahat, Hussein Masoudin from Shqib-Salam, and Ibrahim Al-Quraibi from the village of Al-Sir, without clear justification. The party also reported a widespread shortage of its Arabic ballots, marked with the letters (ع م), in towns like Nazareth and Shfaram. Damaged ballots were also found, leading to suspicions of intentional destruction. The UAL urged voters to be vigilant, ensure they have valid ballots, and demand replacements if ballots are missing or damaged. The party asserted that "the right wing is seeking to weaken its electoral power and prevent it from reaching 8 seats, in order to obstruct the formation of an alternative government led by the change bloc." The police, in response, confirmed the arrest of three suspects in the Negev on suspicion of undermining election integrity. According to police, they received information that individuals had prepared envelopes containing pre-filled ballots and attempted to bribe residents to vote for the UAL. The police stated that the envelopes with ballots were seized, and some contained cash.