Israeli Elections
Despite an expected close race, voter turnout mid-afternoon on election day was at 35.8 percent, slightly lower than the last national election in 2015 at the same time at 36.6 percent.
Likud attorney Koby Matza said the devices were visible and put in place in areas “where there is a significant concern about fraud.”
“Candidates by nature bring with them propaganda, and the ban on interviewing is essential for maintaining the principle of equality,” said Central Elections Committee head Justice Hanan Melcer.
The final 24 hours of campaigning see a blitz of interviews, stops and impromptu stump speeches ahead of an election that’s up for grabs.
Twitter has suspended dozens of Hebrew-language accounts operated by the Church of Almighty God—a Christian group banned in China that believes Jesus has been reincarnated as a Chinese female now residing in Queens, N.Y.—ahead of Tuesday’s Israeli elections.
The goal was to offer information, allowing participants to ask questions about the Israeli government and the conflicts inside Israeli society.
The Arab world reacted with anger to the Israeli premier’s remarks in an interview with Channel 12 News, in which he said he would not rule out the possibility of annexing Judea and Samaria in the future.
As Israelis go to the voting booths on April 9, JNS will offer ongoing coverage on a host of issues, including parliamentary politics and the geopolitical challenges Israel faces with live reports from Likud and Blue and White headquarters.
Blue and White leader Benny Gantz hinted that he would seek major economic investment in Gaza’s civilian economy and infrastructure to stabilize the enclave, and respond to security challenges with far greater force than Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has.
Voting has begun for Israeli military personnel, with 643 ballot boxes set up for Israel Defense Forces soldiers’ across the country, available 72 hours before national polls open on April 9.
In an interview with Israel’s Channel 12 TV news, the Israeli premier said he would not dismantle a single Jewish settlement, and that he would annex parts of Judea and Samaria if he is re-elected on April 9.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is putting out a distress call: “If Likud voters don’t wake up, we’ll lose the election” • Targeting Blue and White leader Benny Gantz, he asks, “If this has been the hardest month of his life, how can he handle being prime minister?”
