From the Liveblog of
Tuesday, February 27, 2024
With municipal voting ongoing, interior minister says no logistical barrier to a national election in wartime
Sam Sokol is the Times of Israel's political correspondent. He was previously a reporter for the Jerusalem Post, Jewish Telegraphic Agency and Haaretz. He is the author of "Putin’s Hybrid War and the Jews"
Despite the ongoing war in Gaza, there are no logistical barriers to holding national elections, Interior Minister Moshe Arbel of Shas states.
Speaking with Army Radio as Israelis across the country head to the polls for municipal elections, Arbel says that “on a technical level there is no obstacle to holding national elections, but there must be a decision by the Knesset to do so.”
Arbel’s comments come a day after Opposition Leader Yair Lapid told reporters in the Knesset that the municipal elections held across most of the nation prove that it is possible to go to the polls during wartime.
While members of Netanyahu’s government have spoken out against calls to hold national elections during wartime, arguing that they would have a negative effect on the country during a time of crisis, Lapid countered that “we need elections as soon as possible.”
“It is technically possible, it is possible in terms of the army, it is even possible to do it without tearing the people apart. In the last few weeks, people held parlor meetings, put up posters, activated campaign staffs, and no disaster happened. Israeli democracy worked,” he said.
Last week, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu dismissed the prospect of early elections during the war, stating that “the last thing we need right now is elections” and arguing that voting for a new Knesset would further divide Israelis.
“What we need now is unity,” he said.
Even some members of the opposition have questioned the need for elections before the end of hostilities, with Yisrael Beytenu chairman Avigdor Liberman calling it “impractical” to hold elections during wartime.
After holding early voting for Israeli troops deployed to Gaza and other fronts, the Israel Defense Forces today opened up polling stations for all other soldiers. In a statement, the military announced that it is currently operating 570 polling sites around Israel.
