Court temporarily blocks law benefitting Deri ally in Tiberias municipal race
Justices issue injunction against legislation which removes requirement for caretaker mayors to sit out an election period before running for the office they were appointed to
The High Court of Justice issued an injunction on Thursday against coalition-backed legislation passed earlier this month voiding a requirement for caretaker mayors to take a break before running for election, a move beneficial to an associate of Shas party leader Aryeh Deri.
The legislation cancels the one-term cooling-off period for acting mayors and other local officials appointed to fill roles before they can run for a full term in the office. The measure was introduced in 2008 to keep unelected officials from enjoying the advantages of an incumbent.
Sponsored by Likud MK Amit Halevi, the law was widely seen as personally tailored to aid Boaz Yosef, the acting mayor of Tiberias, who would otherwise be barred from running in an upcoming contest for the post.
Yosef has served as Tiberias’s acting mayor since 2020, when he was appointed by Deri, then interior minister, after mayor Ron Kobi was removed from office.
A petition was filed against the law by Yosef’s rival in the Tiberias race, Shani Illouz, as well as several other organizations.
Following that petition, the High Court issued a temporary injunction and will convene to discuss the matter on July 30.
Opposition members applauded Thursday’s ruling: “The ‘Tiberias Law’ is corrupt legislation that provides a job for [Deri loyalists],” Yesh Atid MK Karine Elharrar tweeted. “The High Court of Justice once again serves as a brake for the coalition’s corruption.”
Renegade Likud MK Tally Gotliv tweeted that the coalition should not have legislated the law to begin with, saying that she did not vote for it herself because it undermines equality.
Deri himself was forced out of his positions as health minister and interior minister in January after the High Court ruled that his appointment was “unreasonable in the extreme.”
Removing the court’s ability to exercise judicial review on the grounds of reasonableness, particularly regarding political appointments, has been one of the cornerstones of the government’s judicial overhaul efforts.
On Wednesday, the Knesset Constitution Committee approved the bill that would cancel the reasonableness clause, leaving it only needing approval in the Knesset plenum before it becomes law.
Critics of the bill say its main purpose would be to allow politicians to fill positions without any judicial oversight.
