Sohlberg: Israeli election results stand despite Netanyahu interference claims
The Central Elections Committee head stated that substantiated foreign funding would not change the outcome of Tuesday's vote.
By Camila Herrera ·
Noam Sohlberg, head of Israel's Central Elections Committee, stated on Sunday that the results of the country's general election would remain valid even if allegations of foreign interference are proven true. He appeared in a video with the head of the Shin Bet and the attorney general to make the announcement. Sohlberg said that substantiated suspicions would not undermine the integrity of the electoral process or the final count.
Prime Minister Benyamin Netanyahu and his Likud party challenged the outcome after Tuesday's vote. They claimed that Arab-led parties stole the vote by accepting funding from Qatar, though they provided no evidence to support the claim. Qatar rejected the accusations, labeling them a disinformation campaign.
Israeli police released two of three political activists arrested before polls opened on Tuesday. The officers said the men carried envelopes of cash intended to bribe voters. Police linked the suspects to the Ra'am party, which won eight seats in the election. One activist was released on unspecified conditions, while the other was ordered to stay on house arrest. The third activist remains in custody.
Mansour Abbas, the leader of Ra'am, called the arrests undemocratic. He described the move as an attempt to influence the election results. Eisenkot, the main opposition leader, accused Netanyahu of launching an orchestrated and organized campaign to delegitimize the results.
The vote resulted in a deadlock. Netanyahu's bloc secured 53 seats, while the opposition bloc led by Gadi Eisenkot won 48 seats. Neither group holds the majority needed to form a government in the 120-seat parliament. Three Arab-led parties, including Ra'am, won a record 19 seats. A coalition between Eisenkot and the Arab parties would yield 67 seats, a comfortable majority, though such an alliance is politically difficult for many Israelis.
The results are scheduled to be officially certified this week. President Isaac Herzog must then nominate a candidate to form a new government.
