More WZO election fraud alleged as global Jewish communities prepare to vote
More than 15,000 US ballots are now likely to be thrown out, as Jews in more than 35 other countries prepare to choose their delegates by July 28
Zev Stub is the Times of Israel's Diaspora Affairs correspondent.
Investigations continue into widespread voter fraud for the World Zionist Congress in the United States as ballots are tallied, even as preparations are underway for other countries to hold their local elections.
The number of allegedly suspicious votes continues to rise, and more than 15,000 ballots are now likely to be thrown out, sources told The Times of Israel. When the election ended on May 4, it was believed that 10,200 votes would be disqualified.
The new figure would represent more than six percent of the record 238,000 votes cast during the two-month online US vote.
Results of the hotly contested online election are due at the end of May, although it is likely they will be delayed due to the investigation, a source said.
The World Zionist Congress, created by Theodor Herzl in 1897 and often called “the parliament of the Jewish people,” is charged with budgeting more than $1 billion a year in allocations to various Jewish and Israeli causes. Elections are held every five years, and help establish how decisions are made at national institutions such as JNF-KKL, the Jewish Agency for Israel, the United Israel Appeal (Keren Hayesod), and the World Zionist Organization, which is charged with implementing the congress’s decisions.
Votes for as many as six of the 22 slates running for election in the US are being investigated after numerous counts of suspected fraud were uncovered. According to reports, many votes were allegedly cast within minutes of each other from identical locations, using suspicious pre-paid credit cards and unverifiable contact details. No evidence has yet been revealed incriminating any of the slates of orchestrating the fraudulent votes.
Following an earlier exposé on the alleged fraud, numerous Times of Israel readers shared additional reports of fraudulent behavior, which have not been independently verified.
The Area Election Committee (AEC), which oversaw the election, is entrusted with ascertaining whether to disqualify the suspicious votes. It will also have to make the more complicated decision about what to do with any parties found guilty of committing fraud. Many of the slates have called for incriminated parties to be completely disqualified from participating in the Congress, a harsh penalty that could have a painful backlash.
Upcoming elections worldwide
Now, more than 35 countries around the world are preparing to hold their own local elections for the World Zionist Congress, which officials say presents the single biggest opportunity for Jews to influence the future of the Jewish people.
When the 39th World Zionist Congress convenes in Jerusalem on October 28-30, 2025, to deliberate its plans for the coming term, it will include 525 seats, with representation from three different geographic regions.
The United States has 152 seats, divided according to the results of the recent election. Israel has 200 seats, which are automatically divided along the lines of political parties’ representation in the current Knesset. The final 173 seats will be chosen by representatives in other Jewish communities around the world.
In most countries, delegates have often been chosen in the past by local Jewish leaders, instead of via a public vote. However, former Israeli Supreme Court president Miriam Naor, the previous chief justice of the Zionist Supreme Court, which presides over legal matters for national institutions, ruled strongly against such backroom agreements. Naor died in 2022, and according to the Zionist Supreme Court’s website, the current acting president is Judge Steve Adler, the former president of the National Labor Court of Israel.
This upcoming summer, more than 20 countries will hold public elections for Congress. Each country’s results must be submitted no later than July 28.
Canada will hold its online election on June 5-15, its first public vote for the Congress in some 30 years. The UK will vote from June 8-12, its first public vote in two decades.
Final arrangements have not yet been made for voting in Australia, South Africa, and many other countries. France, Italy, Hungary, Argentina, Brazil, Mexico, and Chile are also among those with upcoming votes.
Canada’s online voting will use the Votem election management platform that was used in the US elections, despite questions about its ability to prevent fraud. Other countries will use a different system.
Russia and Ukraine are not expected to hold public elections due to the security situation there.
In many of these countries, in order to avoid fraud, Jews have registered, or are expected to register, with local representatives before the vote. Several smaller communities will offer voting from a physical location only.
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