Arab voter participation has surged in Israel’s elections, drawing increased scrutiny from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Likud party, which has sought to extend voting hours and is reportedly preparing to challenge the integrity of the vote if it suffers significant losses.

According to Israeli media reports, Likud requested a one-hour extension of voting beyond the scheduled 10 p.m. deadline, with Central Elections Committee Chairman Justice Noam Solberg set to decide whether to approve the request, Ynet reported.

The Central Elections Committee, meanwhile, clarified that anyone arriving at a polling station by 10 p.m. would be permitted to vote, even if they cast their ballot after the deadline.

Gadi Eisenkot’s Yashar party opposed extending voting hours, with officials warning that Netanyahu was laying the groundwork to claim that the election’s integrity had been compromised, according to Haaretz.

The developments unfolded as voter participation reached 31.5% by midday Tuesday, the highest rate recorded by that point in an election since 1977, according to the reported figures.

Arab towns recorded some of the highest voter turnout rates, surpassing figures reported in West Bank settlements, Haredi communities, Ramat Hasharon and Tel Aviv, according to Israel’s Channel 14.

Participation reached 64.1% in Al-Atawneh, 47.9% in Qasr al-Sir and 47.8% in al-Qubay’a.

The figures point to a significant mobilization among Palestinian citizens of Israel, whose participation in previous elections had declined to below 45% overall and below 40% in some towns.

The reported surge has drawn attention to the role of Arab voters in shaping the electoral outcome, particularly amid heightened political tensions and concerns over the future direction of Israeli politics.

The rise in Arab turnout has reportedly prompted Likud to intensify its monitoring efforts around polling stations in designated Arab communities.

According to Haaretz, the party has spent millions of shekels recruiting teams to monitor polling locations, film voters and send real-time updates to its headquarters. The teams were assembled in recent weeks and are expected to operate outside polling stations, where different rules apply than those governing official election observers.

Senior Likud figures have also discussed publicly alleging election fraud if the party suffers substantial losses, the newspaper reported, citing people familiar with the discussions.

Sources close to Netanyahu said some party members had urged him to pursue such a strategy and that he was considering it. However, the report did not establish that Netanyahu personally attended the meetings where the proposal was discussed.

One senior Likud official involved in election logistics described the party’s complaints about alleged irregularities in the 2022 election as preparation for the current vote, saying, “2022 was a trial run for the current election.”

Party sources reportedly suggested that footage collected by the monitoring teams could later be presented as evidence of alleged electoral fraud, despite the crews lacking legal authority to verify voters’ identities.

Separately, Likud’s official observers across the country are expected to report suspected irregularities to a dedicated election fraud-monitoring center.

The reported preparations have raised questions about the potential use of voter-monitoring footage and fraud allegations in disputes over the election results. No evidence establishing that the reported monitoring operation has uncovered widespread electoral fraud was presented in the accounts cited.

With Arab voter participation rising sharply, the election has become a test of both the political influence of Palestinian citizens of Israel and the ability of the country’s electoral institutions to maintain public confidence in the voting process.

The outcome could have significant implications for Netanyahu’s political future, while the handling of allegations of irregularities will remain central to the credibility of the final results. (ILKHA)