The thousands of Israelis stranded abroad due to Israel's decision to close down air traffic in an attempt to stop the spread of coronavirus and its variants will not be allowed to vote absentee, as current election law does not provide for that possibility.
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When asked about the possibility of Israelis abroad being allowed to vote at embassies and consulates, Director General of the Central Elections Committee Orly Adas said, "The Election Law explicitly states who is allowed to vote at Israeli diplomatic missions and consulates abroad. The list includes envoys of the Foreign Ministry, the Jewish Agency, the World Zionist Organization, and KKL-JNF who are abroad because of work, and their families.
"Therefore, Israelis who happen to be outside the country and were not able to return will not be allowed to vote from abroad," Adas said.
The existing law could only be changed if the Knesset were to immediately pass legislation to alter it to allow Israelis who are barred from returning home by the closed-skies policy to vote at diplomatic missions throughout the world.
If such a change were proposed, the legislative process would have to be completed this week, as absentee voting for the March 23 election is scheduled to take place on Thursday, March 11.
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