Knesset passes law nixing time-out for appointed mayors, boosting Deri associate

Measure passes on second and third reading despite allegations of being tailored to allow the well-connected acting mayor of Tiberias to run for the seat as an incumbent

A bill voiding a requirement for caretaker mayors to take a break before running for election was given the go-ahead by Knesset lawmakers early Wednesday, clearing the way for an associate of Shas leader Aryeh Deri to throw his hat in the ring.

The legislation does away with a one-term cooling-off period for acting mayors and other local officials appointed to elected roles before they may run for the office. The measure had been introduced in 2008 to keep unelected officials from enjoying the structural advantages of an incumbent.

The Knesset okayed the measure by a vote of 43 to 32 on second and third readings, the final steps before it becomes a law.

Sponsored by Likud MK Amit Halevi, the law is 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. Yosef is said to be a close associate of Shas leader Deri, a key backer of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

On Monday, Shani Illouz, who is running for mayor as a Likud candidate told a Knesset committee that she had been offered sweetheart jobs from shadowy members of the party in exchange for quitting the race, seemingly to boost Yosef’s chances.

Tiberias Acting Mayor Boaz Yosef on the city promenade, May 15, 2022. (Michael Giladi/Flash90)

While the bill was backed by Likud, some in the party had expressed outrage over its content. In early June, Likud MK Tally Gotliv told an internal Likud WhatsApp group that she thought the bill “smelled bad.”

Halevi has said that the bill restores democratic choice to voters.

The bill is part of a blitz of contentious legislation accompanying the government-backed judicial overhaul that has sparked widespread unrest in Israel.

Likud MK Amit Halevi leads a House Committee meeting at the Knesset on March 19, 2023. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)

Former justice minister Gideon Sa’ar, a member of the opposition, has predicted that the measure will not stand up to judicial review. The coalition’s plans for remaking the judiciary include shielding Knesset laws and government decisions from court oversight.

Municipal elections are slated for October 31.