Israeli Supreme Court clears Arab parties and MK Ofer Cassif for 27 October elections

Supreme Court overturns election committee bans

The Supreme Court of Israel unanimously overturned a ruling by the Central Elections Committee on 2 October 2026, allowing the United Arab List (Ra'am) and the Joint List to contest the parliamentary elections on 27 October 2026. The committee, which is controlled by the governing coalition, had voted on 23 September 2026 to ban both slates following petitions submitted by right-wing factions. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's Likud party and National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir's Otzma Yehudit party argued that the Arab political factions rejected Israel's status as a Jewish and democratic state and backed armed actions against the country. Israeli electoral statutes permit candidate or slate disqualifications only when there is clear evidence of inciting racism, denying Israel's existence as a Jewish and democratic state, or supporting armed conflict against the state. In three separate decisions, the court determined that the evidence presented to the committee failed to meet the statutory threshold required for an electoral ban.

Split decision on Ofer Cassif and candidate withdrawal

In a separate 7-2 decision, the Supreme Court reversed the disqualification of Joint List lawmaker Ofer Cassif. While all nine judges expressed objection to what the court termed outrageous statements and conduct by Cassif, only Justices David Mintz and Alex Stein concluded that the record demonstrated a critical mass of evidence supporting armed struggle against the state. The legal proceedings prompted one candidate to exit the race prior to the verdict. Balad party leader Sami Abu Shehadeh withdrew his candidacy on 1 October 2026 after Supreme Court President Yitzhak Amit informed him that a judicial majority favored upholding his disqualification. Balad announced the withdrawal following the consultation with the court.

Party alignments and election competition

The court's decision clears the two primary Arab political slates to seek representation in the Knesset. The Joint List brings together three distinct factions: the Arab nationalist party Balad, the Arab-Jewish communist movement Hadash, and the secular Arab faction Taal. Ra'am, an Islamic movement slate led by Mansour Abbas, focuses on securing civic equality and rights for Israel's Arab minority. Ra'am previously joined the governing coalition that held power from 2021 to 2022. In late August 2026, Ra'am introduced a change to its traditional ticket by naming Yoav Segalovitz, a former senior police official and former Yesh Atid lawmaker, as a Jewish candidate on its party list.

Legal structure and campaign enforcement

Disqualification decisions by the Central Elections Committee must be ratified by the Supreme Court because the committee consists almost entirely of sitting lawmakers representing competing Knesset parties. The reinstated parties are set to contest a competitive election between Netanyahu's right-wing bloc and an opposition alliance featuring centrist figure Gadi Eisenkot. In an unrelated election ruling on 1 October 2026, Central Elections Committee Chairman Noam Sohlberg, who also serves as Deputy President of the Supreme Court, determined that National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir breached campaign regulations. Sohlberg concluded that Ben Gvir violated election statutes in a published video showing the minister berating an incarcerated terrorist.