Former Israeli lawmaker Amichai Chikli will not be able to run in the November 1 elections as a member of the right-wing Likud party's slate, the country's Central Elections Committee (CEC) head and High CourtJustice Yizhak Amit ruled on Wednesday. The decision automatically moves to the Supreme Court for a final ruling.
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Chikli was declared a defector from the right-wing Yamina party on April 25, which under Israeli law could prevent him from running in elections with any party currently in the Knesset. However, Chikli tried avoid this legal loophole by resigning.
According to Israeli law, if a lawmaker resigns immediately after being declared a deserter, they will not suffer the sanctions that usually apply. The law does not clarify what "immediately" means, and Chikli handed in his resignation on July 12.
Likud leader Benjamin Netanyahu then tapped Chikli as the number 14 spot on the party's list. Before this, there were reports that Chikli was going to form his own party, sirening Likud concerns that he would siphon votes from right-wing parties and then not pass the electoral threshold, thus wasting ballots.
Lawmaker Gaby Lasky, of the left-wing Meretz party, petitioned the CEC claiming that Chikli did not resign early enough to be allowed to run on a different list. On Wednesday, the CEC agreed with Lasky and ruled that Chikli could not run with Likud.
Meretz applauded this as a "great achievement," noting, "We will continue to safeguard the purity of the election and be the watchdog against political corruption." Netanyahu's party, however, said in a statement that it views the decision as "absurd and as causing serious harm to democracy." It added that the party plans to appeal the decision in the High Course of Justice.
Similarly, Meretz is petitioning the CEC to prevent Idit Silman from running with Likud after she was awarded the 16th spot on the list. She, too, defected from the Yamina party, then led by former prime minister Naftali Bennett, in a move that essentially helped bring down the government.
This article was first published by i24NEWS.
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