The Yesh Atid faction filed a petition to the High Court of Justice on Sunday against the highly controversial Knesset vote on Wednesday in which Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s personal attorney, Michael Rabello, was elected as the new state comptroller, arguing that the election process was conducted in a corrupt manner.
Coalition MKs were reportedly forced to film themselves casting their ballot during the second round of voting, following pressure from Netanyahu’s ruling Likud party to prove they had voted for the premier’s attorney. By law, the election is required to be conducted through a secret-ballot vote.
The High Court responded on Sunday that the petitions seeking to annul the vote for the State Comptroller will be heard by June 23. “The second round of voting was conducted in a fundamentally corrupt manner,” the Yesh Atid petition stated.
“During the process, heavy pressure was exerted on coalition lawmakers to photograph themselves behind the voting booth in order to prove their loyalty to the prime minister, in blatant disregard of the Knesset Legal Adviser's instructions,” the petition noted.
It also added that in the time when the Knesset Speaker halted the vote for approximately 45 minutes, the prime minister allegedly used the timeframe to exert additional pressure on lawmakers to ensure that they voted for his preferred candidate.
Knesset Speaker Ohana ruled MKs could film themselves voting
The second round of voting was halted in the plenum after concerns were raised about the integrity of the vote, as coalition MKs were accused of filming themselves casting their vote.
When the vote resumed, it was still permitted for MKs to return to the plenum with their phones. Knesset Speaker Amir Ohana (Likud) stated that lawmakers could decide whether or not to film themselves. He noted that "any instruction from anyone to film inside the ballot box is illegal and not valid."
Later, footage of Communications Minister Shlomo Karhi (Likud) filming himself casting his ballot for Rabello circulated, along with an image of MK Hanoch Milwidsky (Likud) taking a selfie and holding up the ballot with Netanyahu’s attorney’s name on it.
Electing state comptroller requires secret ballot, Israeli law says
By law, the process for electing the state comptroller is required to be done through a secret ballot vote to keep the integrity of the vote intact and remove political pressure from the appointment.
The State Comptroller’s Office has oversight over the country’s public administration, integrity, and quality of services. The comptroller has broad access to documents and information, along with the ability to publish reports and audit government ministries and other public bodies.
MK Karine Elharrar (Yesh Atid), who filed the petition to the High Court on behalf of the faction, stated that “Netanyahu, who fears a state commission of inquiry into the October 7 massacre and is unable to cope with criticism, acted unlawfully to place his personal lawyer in the position of State Comptroller, in order to ensure that the events would be investigated by figures who are convenient for him."
“From his perspective, all means are legitimate, including a blatant violation of the law,” she added.
The Movement for Quality Government also filed a separate petition against Rabello’s appointment after the highly controversial vote took place on Wednesday.
The group stated that the appointment constituted a severe conflict of interest, and that it was carried out through a process that was "tainted before our eyes, after Knesset members were reportedly required to document their vote in an unlawful manner as a test of loyalty, contrary to the position of the Knesset’s legal adviser.”