Hotovely claims missing votes could push her up Likud slate
Uncounted ballot box in settlement would snag deputy minister gunning for 20th spot an extra 89 votes, but Likud says votes were counted
Hours after a primary vote recount left Likud MK Tzipi Hotovely no closer to a “realistic” spot on the party’s Knesset slate, sources close to her claimed that an uncounted ballot box could push the deputy minister up into the 20th slot. Likud officials fired back that the box had been counted, and that the recount was over.
Hotovely sits 55 votes short of beating out former minister Avi Dichter for the spot, which would get a Knesset seat should current polling numbers hold.
However, sources close to her said a ballot box from the settlement of Neria, near Ramallah, gives her an extra 89 votes, versus seven for Dichter, bumping her into the slot, Channel 2 news reported.
Should the numbers change, Dichter, a former public security minister and Shin Bet security service head, would slide to 26th place, considered out of Knesset range.
Current polling numbers show Likud garnering about 23 seats in the March 17 election.
The reported missing ballots from Neria is only the latest in a series of errors that have plagued the Likud primaries since they were held five days ago, though party officials dismissed them as unimportant.
Sources close to Hotovely say they would bring this issue to the attention of the Likud’s election committee, though it was unclear if the allegations would change the final outcome.
Likud legal adviser Avi Halevi indicated the vote had been conducted thoroughly and the final numbers would not shift. And Likud officials told Army Radio the “missing” votes in the Neria box had been counted.
Before the allegations about the missing ballots surfaced Monday, Halevi maintained there had been no funny business, despite reports of double-counted votes in Tel Aviv, missing ballots and other discrepancies, which already prompted one partial recount.
“This is no farce. Today will be a celebration in Likud, all of the ballots have been counted, they all have arrived, the election committee headed by a judge has checked the ballots, verified the outcomes, and we have an extraordinary list,” he told the Ynet news outlet.
Hotovely is one of only a handful of women vying for a slot on Likud’s list, alongside MK Miri Regev, MK Gila Gamliel and Nava Boker.