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Knesset Elections Law [Consolidated Version], 5729-1969

חוק הבחירות לכנסת [נוסח משולב], תשכ"ט-1969

Published: 1969-04-14Last amended 2026-07-16✓ Amendment status checked against the Knesset legislation record on 2026-09-29
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Unofficial English translation — for reference only. It may contain errors or omissions and cannot be relied on as a legal text. Only the Hebrew text published in Reshumot is legally binding.More

This English text was translated from the official Hebrew using a range of translation tools, and it undergoes ongoing checks and updates. It is not a certified translation.

Despite these checks, it may contain errors, omissions, or imprecise renderings of legal terminology and cross-references, and it may not yet reflect the latest amendments. It cannot be relied upon as a legal text.

The Hebrew text as published in Reshumot (ספר החוקים) and on the Knesset website is the sole authoritative and legally binding version. In any discrepancy, the Hebrew text prevails.

This translation is provided for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. For use in legal proceedings, request a certified Expert Legal Opinion.

Chapter X: Elections on Vessels

Submission of a List of Vessels§

96.

Not later than the 53rd day before election day, the Minister of the Interior shall submit to the Central Committee, after consultation with the Minister of Transport, a list of all vessels as well as any information relating to vessels that the Committee has requested.

Designation of Vessels for the Purpose of Voting§

97.

The Central Committee shall designate, not later than the 42nd day before election day, the vessels on which voting is to take place under this Chapter; the Committee shall not designate a vessel as aforesaid if it is of the opinion that one of the following applies:

(1)that on the day of voting under section 99 there will be fewer than 14 Israeli citizens aged 18 and above on board;
(2)that on election day the vessel will be in an Israeli port.

Those Entitled to Vote§

98.

A person present as a seaman or as a passenger on a vessel designated as stated in section 97 may vote on that vessel.

Voting Day§

99.
(a)Voting on vessels shall take place on the twelfth day before election day.
(b)(Repealed).

Persons in Charge§

100.
(a)On every vessel on which voting takes place, the Central Committee shall appoint, not later than 40 days before election day, two persons in charge of organising and conducting the voting (hereinafter – persons in charge); one of the persons in charge shall be the captain, and if the captain is not an Israeli citizen – the seaman holding the highest rank among the seamen who are Israeli citizens on the vessel, and the other shall be the seaman with the greatest seniority among the seamen on the vessel who are not officers and who are Israeli citizens.
(b)If there is more than one seaman on a vessel who is qualified to be a person in charge, the oldest among them shall serve as the person in charge.
(c)The Central Committee shall appoint a deputy for each person in charge; a deputy shall act as a person in charge if the person in charge is prevented from fulfilling his or her duties.
(d)The two persons in charge on a vessel shall act jointly in all matters under this Chapter.

Voting Material§

101.

Not later than 35 days before election day, the Chairperson of the Central Committee shall send to the persons in charge their letters of appointment and those of their deputies, a ballot box, a supply of inner and outer voting envelopes, blank voting slips and other election material, all as approved by the Chairperson of the Central Committee together with his or her deputies.

Notice Board§

102.

Immediately after receipt of the letters of appointment under section 101, the persons in charge shall fix a notice board in a prominent place on the vessel, on which they shall post a notice of the designation under section 97 and of the voting day under section 99, the notices under section 104 immediately upon their receipt, and other notices regarding voting arrangements; no other notices shall appear on the board.

Voting Hours and Voting Place§

103.
(a)The persons in charge shall set the voting hours, provided that there shall be not less than eight hours for voting, and shall publish, not later than 48 hours before the commencement of voting, a notice on the notice board regarding the voting hours and voting place.
(b)(Repealed).

Candidate Lists§

104.

After the candidate lists have been approved as stated in section 63, the Chairperson of the Central Committee shall send to the persons in charge a notice of the symbol and designation approved for each candidate list and of the name of the first candidate on each approved candidate list.

105.§

(Repealed — תיקון מס' 12, 1981)

106.§

(Repealed — תיקון מס' 26, 1992)

Identification of Voters§

107.
(a)A person wishing to vote on a vessel must identify himself or herself before the persons in charge as stated in section 74(b).
(b)(Repealed).

Voting Booth§

108.

The persons in charge shall set up a voting booth that conceals the voter from the sight of others, and shall ensure that it contains a writing implement and blank voting slips from those supplied under section 101.

Presence at the Voting Place§

109.

During voting hours, no person other than the persons in charge and voters who have been permitted to be present therein for the purpose of voting shall be present at the voting place.

Manner of Voting§

110.
(a)Once the voter has identified himself or herself, the persons in charge shall give the voter a voting envelope; in the voting booth the voter shall write on a voting slip the symbol of the list for which he or she is voting, or the symbol together with the designation, and shall place the slip inside the voting envelope; the voter shall place the envelope inside an outer envelope; the persons in charge shall note on the outer envelope the voter's name, identity number in the population registry and other particulars as prescribed in Regulations; and the voter shall place it in the ballot box.
(b)A voter may use a printed voting slip as stated in section 76.

Protocol§

111.

The persons in charge shall keep a protocol of the course of the voting on a form prescribed in Regulations and shall sign it upon the conclusion of voting.

Dispatch of Voting Material to the Central Committee§

112.

Immediately after the conclusion of voting, the persons in charge shall lock and seal the ballot box and shall send it together with the protocol to the Central Committee by registered airmail or in another manner directed by the Chairperson of the Central Committee after consultation with the Minister of the Interior.

Handling of Voting Envelopes§

113.
(a)The custody of the ballot boxes, their opening, the examination of voting envelopes and the counting of votes shall be in the hands of the Central Committee in accordance with arrangements set by it.
(b)If a ballot box contains a voting envelope of a person who is not entitled to vote or of a person who has already voted, the Central Committee shall destroy the envelope without opening it.

Invalid Packets§

114.

Voting material as referred to in section 112 that reaches the chairperson of the Central Committee, or a person authorised by the chairperson to receive it, after election day shall not be dealt with by the Central Committee and the Central Committee shall direct that it be destroyed; a protocol shall be drawn up in respect of the destruction.

Immunity§

115.

Notwithstanding anything provided in any other law, no inspection shall be carried out on packets intended for the Central Committee.

Restrictions on Election Campaigning§

116.
(a)Election campaigning by means of assemblies or loudspeakers shall not take place on a vessel.
(b)On a vessel, campaign material shall not be displayed in public and shall not be distributed, except for material supplied by the Central Committee and in accordance with its directions.
(c)From 7 p.m. on the eve of polling day until the close of polling, election campaigning by means of broadcasting radio transmissions through loudspeakers shall not take place on a vessel.
(d)The captain and every seafarer of officer rank shall not take part in election campaigning on a vessel; a person who contravenes this provision shall be subject to disciplinary liability, in addition to criminal liability.

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Chapter X-A: Elections in Prisons and Detention Centres

Definitions§

116a.

In this Chapter –

"prisoner" – a person who on election day is held in custody in a prison;

"detainee" – a person who on election day is held in police custody;

"prison" – a prison or a temporary prison, within the meaning of the Prisons Ordinance [New Version], 5732-1971;

"detention centre" – a place in which detainees are held in custody;

"warder" – within the meaning of the Prisons Ordinance [New Version], 5732-1971.

Polling Stations for Prisoners and Detainees§

116b.
(a)
(1)Not later than the 53rd day before election day, the Minister of Internal Security shall submit to the chairperson of the Central Committee a list of all prisons and detention centres and shall indicate in respect of them such additional particulars as shall be prescribed by Regulations;
(2)The chairperson of the Central Committee shall determine, on the basis of the list referred to in paragraph (1) and after consultation with the Minister of Internal Security or a person appointed by the Minister for that purpose, special polling stations for prisoners and detainees (hereinafter – prisoner polling stations); a prisoner polling station may be mobile.
(b)A prisoner or a detainee may vote at a prisoner polling station in the prison, detention centre or police station in which they are located on election day, or at the prisoner polling station nearest to that place; the person responsible for the custody of a prisoner or detainee shall make the arrangements that will enable the prisoner or detainee to reach a prisoner polling station in order to vote; the person responsible shall notify the prisoner or detainee of these arrangements as far as possible before election day.
(c)Warders present at a prison on election day shall be entitled to vote at a prisoner polling station; and likewise the members of the polling committee and the secretary of the polling committee shall be entitled to vote at a prisoner polling station. And likewise, police officers present at a detention centre on election day shall be entitled to vote at a prisoner polling station located in that detention centre.

Composition of Polling Committees§

116c.
(a)The polling committees for prisoners shall be composed of representatives of the factions represented on the Central Committee; their factional composition, including the chairpersons, shall be determined by the chairperson of the Central Committee after consultation with the Central Committee.
(b)The provisions of section 21a shall apply, with the necessary modifications, to prisoner polling committees; the provisions of section 24(d) shall not apply to them.
(c)A faction represented on the Central Committee that wishes to appoint representatives to a prisoner polling committee shall submit to the chairperson of the Central Committee or to a person appointed by the chairperson for that purpose a list of the proposed representatives, not later than 30 days before election day; the list shall be signed by the faction's representative and shall include the following particulars:
(1)the name of the faction;
(2)the given name and surname of the representative;
(3)the identity number of the representative;
(4)the address of the representative.
(d)The appointment of members of prisoner polling committees requires the approval of the Minister of Police or a person appointed by the Minister for that purpose; the chairperson of the Central Committee or a person appointed by the chairperson for that purpose shall transmit the lists to the Minister of Police or to a person appointed by the Minister for that purpose, and the Minister or that person shall decide, not later than 20 days before election day, on the approval of a representative or on the refusal to approve a representative; notice of such a decision shall be sent to the representative of the faction concerned.
(e)The representative of a faction may appeal to the chairperson of the Central Committee against a decision under subsection (d) not to approve a representative of that faction; the appeal shall be submitted not later than 15 days from the day on which notice of the decision was received.
(f)There is no obligation to bring to the knowledge of the faction's representative the reasons for a decision not to approve a representative of the faction, but they shall be brought to the knowledge of the chairperson of the Central Committee hearing the appeal against that decision.

Voting Procedures§

116d.
(a)The chairperson of the Central Committee, in consultation with the Minister of Police, shall determine provisions regarding the procedures for the operation and functioning of prisoner polling stations, including the voting hours at polling stations generally or at a particular polling station.
(b)A person wishing to vote at a prisoner polling station must identify himself or herself as provided in section 74 or by means of a prisoner's card issued by the Israel Prison Service.
(c)A person voting at a prisoner polling station shall place the envelope referred to in sections 74a and 75(a) inside a second envelope, and the polling committee shall indicate on the face of the outer envelope the name of the voter, the voter's identity number in the population registry, and such additional particulars as have been prescribed by Regulations.
(d)The counting of votes of those who voted at prisoner polling stations shall be as prescribed by Regulations.
(e)During voting hours, no person shall be present at the site of a prisoner polling station except members of the Central Committee, members of the polling committee, the secretary of the polling committee, a representative of the Minister of Police, a voter who has been permitted to enter for the purpose of voting, the Minister of the Interior or the Minister's representative, warders or police officers in such number as the polling committee deems necessary for the maintenance of order, and employees of the Central Committee who are required to be present at the polling station for the purpose of performing their functions and who carry out work or functions of the type determined by the chairperson of the Central Committee in rules as referred to in section 73a.
(f)In the voting booth, a notice shall be displayed regarding the candidate lists approved under section 63, together with the letter and designation approved for each list and the name of the first candidate on the list; the notice shall be prepared by the chairperson of the Central Committee.

Election Campaigning§

116e.
(a)Election campaigning that is published and broadcast in the media shall be permitted within the walls of prisons and detention centres, to the extent possible; the chairperson of the Central Committee, in consultation with the Minister of Police, shall determine rules regarding the manner in which this provision shall be implemented and the extent of its implementation.
(b)Except as provided in subsection (a), all election campaigning within the walls of a prison or detention centre is prohibited, whether in writing or orally.
(c)No campaigning shall be directed exclusively at prisoners or detainees.
(d)In every prison, and to the extent possible also in every detention centre, a board shall be installed on which the name, address and telephone number of each list, as submitted to the Central Committee, shall be posted; prisoners and detainees shall be entitled to inspect the said boards, under the conditions and at the times to be determined by the chairperson of the Central Committee in consultation with the Minister of Police, having regard to the need not to prejudice order and security.

Special Powers§

116f.

The provisions of section 70a shall apply, with the necessary modifications, to elections in prisons and detention centres.

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Chapter X-B: Elections at Israeli Diplomatic and Consular Missions

Entitlement to Vote§

116g.
(a)A voter who is a State employee or an employee of the Jewish Agency, the World Zionist Organisation, the Jewish National Fund, or Keren Hayesod, and who is present in a foreign country by reason of employment, may vote at a special polling station to be placed at a diplomatic or consular mission of Israel (hereinafter – the mission); the spouse of such a State employee and a child of such a State employee who has not yet reached twenty years of age and who are voters shall also be entitled to vote at that polling station; for this purpose –

"State employee" – includes a soldier as defined in section 89;

"employee of the Jewish Agency, the World Zionist Organisation, the Jewish National Fund or Keren Hayesod" – includes an emissary of any of those institutions, provided that the term of the mission is at least one year.

(b)The provision of subsection (a) shall not apply to an employee referred to in that subsection in respect of whom the Prime Minister or the Minister of Defence has notified the Civil Service Commissioner that for reasons of State security the employee is not entitled to vote.

Polling Day§

116h.
(a)Voting at the missions shall take place on the 12th day before election day.
(b)(Repealed).

Voting Procedures and Other Provisions§

116i.

The provisions of sections 100 to 116 shall apply to voting at the missions, with the necessary modifications according to the matter, and with such other modifications as may be required, which shall be determined by the chairperson of the Central Committee in consultation with the Minister of the Interior and with the Minister of Foreign Affairs.

List of Persons Entitled to Vote at Missions§

116j.
(a)Not later than the 53rd day before election day, the Minister of Foreign Affairs shall submit to the Central Committee a list of the missions.
(b)Not later than the 52nd day before election day, the chairperson of the Central Committee shall submit to the authorised officials a list of the missions.
(c)(Repealed).
(d)Not later than the 42nd day before election day, the authorised officials shall notify each employee, and the employee's spouse and child, of their right to vote at the mission; the notice shall be accompanied by the list of missions referred to in subsection (b) and the notice shall also set out the voting days at the missions as referred to in section 116h; the form and particulars of the notice shall be prescribed by Regulations.
(e)A person who has not received a notice as referred to in subsection (d) and who claims to be entitled to vote at a mission may appeal against this to the chairperson of the Central Committee, and the chairperson's decision shall be final.
(f)(Repealed).
(g)In this section –

"authorised official" –

(1)in respect of State employees, their spouses and their children – the Civil Service Commissioner;
(2)in respect of employees of the World Zionist Organisation, their spouses and their children – the Secretary-General of the World Zionist Organisation;
(3)in respect of employees of the Jewish Agency, their spouses and their children – the Director-General of the Jewish Agency;
(4)in respect of employees of the Jewish National Fund, their spouses and their children – the Director-General of the Jewish National Fund;
(5)in respect of employees of Keren Hayesod, their spouses and their children – the Director-General of Keren Hayesod.
116k.§

(Repealed — תיקון מס' 34, 1999)

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