High Court lets Arab parties run in election, reversing Central Election Committee ban

By Jeremy Sharon

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2 October 2026, 1:14 pm

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Jeremy Sharon is The Times of Israel’s legal affairs and settlements reporter

From left: Balad chairman Sami Abou Shehadeh, MK Ahmad Tibi and MK Ofer Cassif arrive at the Supreme Court in Jerusalem for a hearing on the Central Elections Committee’s decision to disqualify candidates and parties from running in the upcoming Knesset elections, October 1, 2026. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)

The High Court of Justice rules unanimously to reject the Central Election Committee’s decision to ban the entire Joint List of majority Arab parties from running in the upcoming election, saying that the decision did not meet the requirements for disqualification.

The court similarly strikes down a ban on Ra’am, the historically Islamist party led by MK Mansour Abbas that was part of the Bennett-Lapid government and includes Jewish ex-MK Yoav Segalovitz.

The High Court also rules seven to two to reject the CEC’s decision to bar Hadash MK Ofer Cassif from running, saying that although all the justices “object to his outrageous comments and actions,” they did not meet the strict requirements established through precedent for disqualification.