Meretz to go to court over panel’s decision that Silman can run

The Meretz party says it will turn to the High Court after the Central Elections Committee declined yesterday to disqualify Idit Silman from running in the upcoming election.

Silman had been a Yamina MK and whip of the coalition that included Meretz before she jumped ship in May, helping bring down the government. Over the summer she officially switched to Likud, and is running on the party’s slate.

Meretz had based its petition for her to be barred on Basic Law: The Knesset’s Section 6a, which states that a lawmaker who does not resign from her office immediately after leaving her party cannot run for Knesset with another sitting party. “Leaving” the party can include voting against the party’s position on expressing confidence in the government, if it was done with the promise of political compensation.

The Central Elections Committee is seen by many as overly politicized, and its decisions are regularly overturned by the High Court.