Sami Abu Shehadeh, chairman of the Balad party and a candidate on the Joint List, has announced the withdrawal of his candidacy for the 26th Knesset elections following a hearing held at the Supreme Court. The hearing took place following the Central Elections Committee’s decision to disqualify Abu Shehadeh, a decision supported by Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara and State Attorney Amit Aisman. The primary basis for the disqualification concerned an article published by Abu Shehadeh on October 8, 2023, the day after the Hamas attack on Israel, in which he addressed the organization's actions.
During the Supreme Court hearing, conducted before a panel of nine justices, Supreme Court President Yitzhak Amit suggested that Abu Shehadeh consider voluntarily withdrawing his candidacy to avoid the need for a binding ruling in his case. Justice Amit clarified that a majority of the panel members leaned toward supporting his disqualification. During the proceedings, an exchange occurred between Justice Alex Stein and Abu Shehadeh, with the justice questioning why, in his various articles written in English, Abu Shehadeh had not found it appropriate to define Hamas as a terrorist organization. Conversely, Abu Shehadeh highlighted his parliamentary work on behalf of individuals with disabilities and human rights.
Upon learning of the party's decision regarding his withdrawal, Balad stated that the move was made out of political responsibility and following consultation with legal counsel, due to concerns regarding broad implications for the Arab political space. The party alleged that the use of disqualification was intended to shrink the operational space of Arab citizens. In response, various politicians commented on the step. Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, who filed the disqualification request, welcomed the withdrawal while criticizing the lack of a guiding judicial ruling in the case. Minister Bezalel Smotrich criticized the Supreme Court President's suggestion, arguing that it constituted an avoidance of drafting a clear ruling on a principled issue. The question of Abu Shehadeh's disqualification was thus decided without a judicial verdict, thereby avoiding an explicit legal determination by the highest court regarding his statements following October 7.