{"id":534135,"date":"2026-07-10T04:09:46","date_gmt":"2026-07-10T04:09:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/534135\/"},"modified":"2026-07-10T04:09:46","modified_gmt":"2026-07-10T04:09:46","slug":"levin-urges-knesset-to-ignore-high-court-order-for-new-state-comptroller-vote","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/534135\/","title":{"rendered":"Levin urges Knesset to ignore High Court order for new state comptroller vote"},"content":{"rendered":"

Justice Minister Yariv Levin said Wednesday morning that the Knesset should not abide by a High Court of Justice ruling that invalidated<\/a> the results of the state comptroller election last month and ordered the Knesset to redo the vote.<\/p>\n

The justice minister said that the Knesset should not hold a new election for the position, and that Michael Rabello \u2014 a longtime lawyer and adviser to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu who was elected state comptroller in the now-overturned ballot \u2014 should simply take up the position regardless of the ruling.<\/p>\n

Levin claimed that the coalition backed his stance, though the Netanyahu-appointed and coalition-backed chief of police reportedly said Wednesday that his force would obey the High Court \u201cwithout batting an eyelash,\u201d a day after his spokesman refused to say so.<\/p>\n

Levin\u2019s comments mark the second time this week<\/a> that he and the Netanyahu coalition have attacked the legitimacy of the High Court head-on, in what is becoming an increasingly intense constitutional clash between the two branches of government.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere is no possibility of holding repeat elections, and no one disputes this within the coalition,\u201d Levin told the ultra-Orthodox Kol Barama radio station.<\/p>\n

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\u201cThe running of the Knesset is in the hands of the Knesset speaker and the Knesset House Committee, and is not in the hands of the court. The High Court judges cannot simply become the Knesset speaker and deliberate on\u2026 whether an election was legal,\u201d continued the justice minister.<\/p>\n

Rabello was elected<\/a> by the Knesset as state comptroller in a highly controversial election on June 3, where at least six coalition MKs violated the legal requirement that the vote be held by secret ballot.<\/p>\n

\t\"\"
\n\t\tAttorney Michael Rabello is seen before a court hearing on the dismissal of National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir at the Supreme Court in Jerusalem, April 15, 2026. (Yonatan Sindel\/Flash90)<\/p>\n

This led the High Court to rule the election invalid earlier this month, and order the Knesset to redo the vote.<\/p>\n

Levin in his interview said that Rabello \u201cshould simply enter the [state comptroller] offices and begin to carry out his job,\u201d and accused the High Court of creating a constitutional crisis by \u201cunlawfully taking authorities upon itself and taking control of a body [the Knesset] that is supposed to review itself.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sources close to Rabello confirmed to The Times of Israel that he told the heads of the coalition immediately after the High Court ruling that it should hold a new election, and that he would not take up the role otherwise. The sources said that nothing has changed in Rabello\u2019s stance since then.<\/p>\n

Levin\u2019s suggested course of action would cause a true constitutional crisis, since the State Comptroller\u2019s Office would not know which branch of government to obey \u2014 the High Court or the Knesset.<\/p>\n

Rebuking Levin\u2019s call,\u00a0Knesset legal adviser Sagit Afik reportedly told Knesset Speaker Amir Ohana that the government must comply with the High Court of Justice and hold repeat elections for the position of state comptroller within the next two weeks, or \u201cas soon as possible,\u201d Ynet reported Wednesday.<\/p>\n

Afik informed Ohana that the vote can take place even after the Knesset is dissolved later this month in preparation for the national election, due to the urgency of the matter.<\/p>\n

Eisenkot: Levin is enemy of Israeli democracy<\/p>\n

Opposition leaders denounced Levin over his latest attack on the High Court, and accused him of undermining Israeli democracy.<\/p>\n

\u201cYariv Levin, the man who led the regime overhaul even at the cost of dismantling Israeli society while Netanyahu hides behind him, one of the leading contributors to the State of Israel\u2019s lowest point, is the enemy of Israeli democracy,\u201d declared Yashar party chair Gadi Eisenkot in a post on X.<\/p>\n

\t\"\"
\n\t\tSupreme Court President Isaac Amit and 10 justices at a High Court hearing on a law increasing political power over judicial appointments in Jerusalem, June 21, 2026. (Yonatan Sindel\/Flash90)<\/p>\n

\u201cNetanyahu and his government continue to dismantle the foundations of democracy on the eve of the most fateful election in Israeli history,\u201d continued the ex-IDF chief, who is currently the main challenger to Netanyahu in the upcoming election.<\/p>\n

\u201cNetanyahu, the people of Israel will stand before you as an impregnable wall. We will not allow you to dismantle Israel.\u201d<\/p>\n

Levin\u2019s call to disobey the High Court comes days after the government issued a resolution declaring it\u00a0did not accept as valid a ruling\u00a0issued by the top court on the operations of Israel\u2019s commercial broadcasting regulatory body.<\/p>\n

This prompted the High Court to warn of societal breakdown<\/a> if the government did not obey its rulings and said there would likely be negative legal consequences for public officials disobeying court orders.<\/p>\n

The High Court has previously rebuked Ben Gvir for denying adequate rations to Palestinian prisoners and for unlawfully interfering with operational police decisions, while Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara has expressed support for petitions demanding the High Court order his ouster over such abuses of power.<\/p>\n

Police chief vows to obey court<\/p>\n

Seemingly picking a side in the fight between the coalition and the courts, Israel Police chief Daniel Levy said Wednesday that his force would obey the High Court \u201cwithout batting an eyelash,\u201d according to Hebrew media reports.<\/p>\n

Levy\u2019s reported comments came a day after police spokesperson Aryeh Doron refused to say the force would heed a hypothetical High Court order that clashed with the directives of National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir.<\/p>\n

\t\"\"<\/a>
\n\t\tNational Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir (right) with Police Chief Commissioner Daniel Levy mark Memorial Day at Mount Herzl military cemetery on April 30, 2025. (Arie Leib Abrams\/Flash90)<\/p>\n

\u201cWe obey the law and will comply with every High Court ruling without batting an eyelash, regardless of anyone\u2019s political opinion,\u201d Levy was quoted as saying at a Traffic Police ceremony. \u201cWe\u2019re an apolitical organization, and we leave our opinions at home.\u201d<\/p>\n

In a video clip from the speech, Levy also vowed to act \u201cimpartially against any attempt to harm the integrity of the elections or break the law or disrupt public order.\u201d<\/p>\n

On Tuesday, Doron was asked repeatedly in an interview with Kan public radio who the police force would heed in such a case, and answered: \u201cWhomever the law of the State of Israel requires it to obey.\u201d<\/p>\n


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