By ANNA BARSKY, GILAD MORAG

JULY 18, 2026 05:49

Updated: JULY 18, 2026 05:50

The Lod District Court granted an injunction on Thursday that stopped a scheduled Likud ballot after it reviewed a petition submitted by the Social Forum linked to the National Labor Federation.

The ballot, set to start at noon, aimed to decide fresh guidelines for choosing the Likud candidate roster before the vote for the 26th Knesset.

Likud representatives stated Thursday afternoon that the ballot would not proceed because of the court directive. Party legal counsel attorney Ilan Bombach asked to delay the convention vote owing to holdups in the legal process, as the Likud court met to address the issue.

The Social Forum claimed that Likud leadership had breached a party court decision by blocking the forum's suggested election guidelines from reaching a vote.

The plan sought to guarantee that every Likud member, even those with disabilities, could join the selection process.

The court issued a temporary order preventing Likud from conducting the ballot unless the forum's plan was also offered to delegates, following a Supreme Court decision. Attorney Eric Twito filed the petition.

"This marks a win for practical judgment," the Social Forum stated. "We will not permit the Likud elections to be taken. The Social Forum tied to the National Labor Federation will keep acting as the shield for the Likud's 150,000 members."

Thousands of delegates

The fifth Likud convention was projected to gather around 4,500 delegates in a ballot that might alter the party's candidate roster and examine the power dynamics among Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Likud Central Committee chairman and Health Minister Haim Katz, MK David Bitan, and numerous party activists.

Voting sites were planned to run from noon until 8 p.m. at 17 spots throughout Israel. Qualified delegates could cast ballots at any site.

The confidential vote would have made outcomes hard to foresee and permitted delegates to oppose the plan without direct confrontation with Netanyahu.

Central to the conflict stood a collection of election guidelines endorsed by the Likud Constitution Committee, led by Katz and backed by Netanyahu.

The plan would award the Likud chairman eight reserved spots on the party roster, in positions 3, 5, 9, 11, 15, 18, 26, and 31.

Six of those spots would land inside the top 20, shifting candidates chosen in the primaries lower on the roster.

The plan marked a step back from Netanyahu's first request for up to 11 reserved spots, including five in the top 10.

At one stage, Likud officials judged that holdups in settling the system might lead to canceling the primaries and forming a panel to name the party's candidates.

The plan would also bring major shifts to the candidate roster structure, such as reallocating district spots and securing representation.

It would permit ministers, deputy ministers, and sitting MKs to run in district contests, a clause that has sparked firm resistance from party activists.

District spots have long offered new candidates a route into the Knesset while keeping geographic balance.

Letting incumbent lawmakers enter those spots would give an MK worried about missing the nationwide roster the chance to compete in a smaller, possibly friendlier district race.

Such candidates would face activists who have built local backing over years.

Critics contend that pairing reserved spots with opening district races to sitting lawmakers would sharply curb Likud members' sway over the final roster.

The plan also covers guaranteed spots for women, youth, immigrants, and other groups.

Although the primaries would stay formally intact, detractors say fewer strong positions would be settled by the nationwide vote.

Before the planned ballot, Bitan issued a video calling on delegates to turn down the guidelines.

"The guidelines today are Haim Katz's guidelines, which he pressed the prime minister to bring to a ballot," said Bitan.

"Anyone who values the Likud and defends democracy in the movement is voting today against the guidelines at the convention," he added.

Bitan observed that if the plan were rejected, Netanyahu could offer a fresh idea that was not shaped "under pressure from Haim Katz."

He also claimed that eight high-level reserved spots would in effect create "an appointments panel in practice."

Bitan does not reject giving the Likud chairman the power to reserve spots in principle.

During talks, he advanced a narrower idea that would grant Netanyahu three viable reserved spots, in positions 2, 6, and 16, plus two extra spots in positions 39 and 48.

His idea also called for standard primaries and for district spots to stay open only to new candidates.

Bitan: No 'blank check' for Likud chairman

Bitan argued that the party chairman should not receive a "blank check" without delegates knowing the intended candidates, the electoral value they would add, and which sitting lawmakers would be moved to nonviable spots.

Tensions rose during a Likud Constitution Committee meeting, where Bitan cautioned against the "political removal" of sitting lawmakers.

Netanyahu replied, according to attendees, that Bitan should run for Likud leader and see how many Knesset seats he could secure.

Bitan grew upset after details of the exchange reached the media instantly. He blamed Netanyahu's aides and exited the meeting.

The committee later endorsed Katz's plan by majority vote.

Although the plan has at times been called "Netanyahu's plan," it arose from joint work between Netanyahu and Katz.

Netanyahu sought the reserved spots, while Katz, who leads both the Likud Central Committee and the Constitution Committee, shaped the process and moved it through party bodies.

As part of the talks, Netanyahu visited Katz's home after Katz voiced concerns about the original request for more reserved spots.

Bitan has tried to convince delegates that opposing the plan would not mean opposing Netanyahu.

He maintains that his effort targets an arrangement Katz placed on the Likud chairman.

The tactic also aims to give delegates room to reject the plan without seeming to challenge Netanyahu directly.

The clash occurs amid an ongoing power contest between Katz and Bitan, two of Likud's key figures.

The pair have vied in recent months for sway over the party convention's bodies and the Likud constitution.

Bitan showed notable strength in internal branch votes, while Katz keeps formal control of the Central Committee and the Constitution Committee.

Backers of the plan argue that Netanyahu needs leeway to refresh the roster, draw figures with voter appeal, and build political ties ahead of the election.

Gideon Sa'ar ranks among those named as a possible pick for a reserved spot.

Supporters see the eight spots as a fair middle ground compared with Netanyahu's first request and the earlier chance of scrapping the primaries.

The plan has also stirred worry among ministers and MKs not aligned with Bitan.

Many have steered clear of open clashes with Netanyahu, yet each reserved spot near the top of the roster shifts other candidates lower.

An MK who gains the 20th spot in the primaries could drop into the 30s once reserved spots, district slots, and guaranteed representation are factored in.

The secret ballot has thus raised more alarm in Netanyahu's office than an open vote, since delegates who publicly back the plan could reject it privately.

If the plan passes, the primaries are slated for August 17 under the updated rules.

If rejected, Likud would face a short, intense push to craft an alternate system, with Bitan likely to press for a narrower plan.

One possible middle path would keep Netanyahu's reserved spots while dropping the clause that lets sitting MKs enter district races.

The outcome would signal more than a dispute over roster structure.

Approval would bolster Netanyahu and Katz and highlight their hold on the new convention.

Rejection would hand Bitan, concerned lawmakers, and district activists a major political win, while indicating that Likud leadership can no longer count on automatic backing from party bodies.

"Likud chairman Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu maintains that all Likud members must be able to use their right to vote," the Likud Party said in reply. "Given that legal delays interrupted the voting process, and many Likud members did not use their right to vote, Likud chairman Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu directed the Likud administration not to hold the vote today and to schedule a date soon for a new vote."