Balad leader Sami Abu Shehadeh was told to abandon his reelection campaign on Thursday after the High Court indicated that a majority of its nine judges would uphold his disqualification.
Supreme Court President Isaac Amit delivered the message during a hearing in Jerusalem, telling Abu Shehadeh that the panel had a “majority” favouring his “disqualification”.
“We recommend that Abu Shehadeh withdraw from the race,” Amit said.
The recommendation was immediately rejected by National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, whose Otzma Yehudit party petitioned to disqualify Abu Shehadeh.
“He should not be given the opportunity to withdraw. There should be a ruling,” Ben-Gvir said, describing the court's proposal as “far too lenient”.
Israel's Central Elections Committee voted last week to disqualify Abu Shehadeh, the Ra’am party, the Joint List and Hadash MK Ofer Cassif. The decisions were all challenged before the Supreme Court, which is hearing the cases before an expanded nine-justice panel.
The committee voted 31-4 against Abu Shehadeh and Balad, after accepting a petition from Otzma Yehudit that accused him of supporting armed struggle against Israel.
Balad is an Arab-Israeli political party that advocates for equality, Palestinian citizens’ rights, and a “state of all its citizens”.
The committee said that statements in an article Abu Shehadeh published on October 8, 2023, particularly his discussion of the October 7 Hamas attack and armed struggle, amounted to support for armed struggle against Israel.
The article described the events of October 7 as an “important historical event” and discussed the attacks’ political and strategic significance.
Abu Shehadeh rejects that interpretation, saying the article was analytical rather than an expression of support, and has stated that he opposes violence against civilians and armed struggle. He also denied supporting Hamas.
At Thursday's hearing, Abu Shehadeh expressed regret over the article.
The attorney general has taken the opposing position, arguing that Abu Shehadeh's statements meet the legal threshold for disqualification.
Both Gali Baharav-Miara and State Attorney Amit Aisman told the court that his conduct demonstrated support for armed struggle by a terrorist organisation.
Abu Shehadeh's lawyers have argued that the case relies essentially on a single article and does not meet the demanding standard traditionally required to remove a candidate from an election.
“I will continue to work for human rights, freedom and equality,” Abu Shehadeh said after the committee's decision. “The attempt to disqualify me is an attempt to silence the voice of Arab society.”
The Supreme Court has not yet issued its final ruling and is still holding hearings on the wider case banning all the major Arab parties, with a decision expected next week.
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