Netanyahu's Party Claims Arab Parties Rigged and Stole Israeli Elections Amid Unexpected Twist

Netanyahu's Party Claims Arab Parties Rigged and Stole Israeli Elections Amid Unexpected Twist

  • Benjamin Netanyahu's Likud party accused Arab parties of rigging Israel's elections through bribery, violence, forgery, and illegal voter mobilisation software
  • Likud said it gathered hundreds of testimonies and pieces of evidence from polling stations across Arab areas in Israel
  • The party demanded urgent investigations from police, the Shin Bet, and the Central Elections Committee over the alleged electoral crimes

Benjamin Netanyahu's Likud party has accused Arab political parties in Israel of stealing the country's elections through a series of criminal acts, including bribery, violence, forgery, and the use of prohibited software to drive up voter numbers.

The party made the allegation in a post shared by Netanyahu on October 28, 2026, saying Likud had already gathered hundreds of testimonies and pieces of evidence documenting what he described as widespread electoral fraud across numerous Arab polling stations.

Benjamin Netanyahu claims widespread electoral fraud in Arab polling stations as Likud submits evidence to police, Shin Bet and election authorities.
Likud alleges election fraud by Arab parties, citing bribery, forged ballots, voter intimidation and illegal software use across multiple polling stations. Photo credit: AFP via Getty Images
Source: Getty Images

Among the specific infractions cited were thousands of cash-stuffed envelopes found alongside Ra'am party ballot slips, threats and physical violence directed at polling station officials, voters casting ballots more than once behind the curtain, double-identity voting, and discrepancies between the number of envelopes counted and the number of registered voters at particular stations.

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Likud calls for immediate action

The party said it was handing over all the evidence it had collected to three separate bodies: the Israeli Police, the internal security service Shin Bet, and the Central Elections Committee.

Netanyahu's party wrote:

"We demand from the police and the Shin Bet a thorough investigation into the election theft by the Arab parties and the full prosecution of the criminals. We demand from the Central Elections Committee an immediate response to investigate these criminal offenses that have severely damaged the integrity of the elections in Israel and the election results."

The party added: "This is a serious blow to Israeli democracy and the voting rights of Israeli citizens. The law enforcement agencies must act with an iron fist and in an immediate manner.

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Scope of the allegations

Likud's claims, if substantiated, would represent one of the most significant electoral fraud scandals in Israel's recent history. The party framed the alleged offences not only as violations of electoral law but as an attack on the democratic rights of all Israeli citizens.

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No response from the named Arab parties, the Israeli Police, the Shin Bet, or the Central Elections Committee had been included in the materials provided at the time this report was filed.

Son of Netanyahu changes his name

Legit.ng earlier reported that Yair Netanyahu, the son of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, has changed his legal name to Yonatan Hon, according to a report by Israeli newspaper Haaretz published in July, 2026.

Source: Legit.ng

Authors:
Basit Jamiu avatar

Basit Jamiu (Current Affairs and Politics Editor) Basit Jamiu is an AFP-certified journalist. He is a current affairs and politics editor at Legit.ng. He holds a bachelor's degree from Nasarawa State University (2023). Basit previously worked as a staff writer at Ikeja Bird (2022), Associate Editor at Prime Progress (2022). He is a 2025 CRA Grantee, 2024 Open Climate Fellow (West Africa), 2023 MTN Media Fellow. Email: basitjamiu1st@gmail.com and basit.jamiu@corp.legit.ng.