Likud readying to appeal against election results over alleged illegal voter tracking by Arab parties

The Likud party is preparing to appeal the results of the recent election — either in part or in whole — based on allegations that Arab political parties used electronic means of tracking voters to boost turnout in a manner banned by the High Court of Justice just before the election.

Likud party lawyer Ilan Bombach tells The Times of Israel that Likud polling station observers filed 700 complaints on election day about Arab party activists using a smartphone app to track voter turnout, asserting that each complaint affected “hundreds or thousands of votes.”

Since the High Court barred the practice, this gave the Arab parties an unfair advantage, Bombach maintains. The Likud lawyer says it has yet to be decided whether the appeal will challenge the entire election result or be more narrowly focused.

The complaint will be filed with the Jerusalem District Court, though likely not before November 17, the last day such appeals can be filed.

The appeal may also cover the two ongoing investigations into electoral fraud currently being investigated by law enforcement agencies, depending on what findings are released by that date, Bombach adds.

An organization called the Civilian Election Guard which sent volunteer observers to polling stations on election day reported on 374 instances of apparently illegal use of apps to track voter turnout.

The group said that the largest number of such violations was by Likud activists and polling station workers, who comprised 32 percent of all such incidents, followed by United Torah Judaism with 10%, Shas with 6%, Ra’am with 2% and the Joint List with 1%.