For the interview we conducted, she came directly from Hadassah Hospital in Jerusalem, where they cast her leg and made it clear that she would have to spend a month with the cast, but Adas does not let the pain distract her. She is full of energy and prepares resolutely for the complex and wide-ranging operation .
Adas began working for the Election Commission in 1988. For more than 20 years she worked alongside the legendary CEO Tamar Edri, and in 2010 she replaced her in the position. “This is my 14th election in 32 years,” she says proudly.
During a visit to her office last week, on the ground floor of the Knesset, I saw dozens of people working under conditions in the narrow corridors, because the Knesset had not yet taken a break and therefore did not provide the Election Commission with the dozens of rooms it needed during this period.
There is no doubt that the vast experience that Adas has gained over the years, and especially in the last two years, in which she conducted three stormy election campaigns a few months apart, strengthens her self-confidence and the feeling that she can successfully meet the challenge she faces. I still wondered what she was afraid of in the run-up to the upcoming election campaign.
“If I tell you I have no worries, I will lie to you and myself,” says Adas. “The truth is that my stomach is turning, because this is a very, very complex election. In fact, we have to run a regular election with 11,000 ballots, and on the other hand run a few more systems. Elections, because it involves the establishment from scratch of huge arrays, such as holding elections in special places for the isolated and sick, elections in nursing homes and sheltered housing, and dealing with a 30 percent increase in the number of polling stations compared to previous elections. I am convinced that we will meet every task that is assigned to us and we will do it successfully. ”
“One of our big challenges is to ensure that two weeks after the election it does not turn out that there has been an increase in morbidity. So we intend to take all possible measures to prevent this from happening. We all want to get our lives back after the election. If we do our part and the public does its part, no There is no reason for an increase in the number of patients. “
Vote confidently
Adas talks about the constant juggling of corona restrictions on the need to go to the polls. “My insomnia has not stopped in the last two years, not even in the pause between the election campaigns. In fact, since the previous election ended, in March 2020, there has been constant talk of new elections. There is no doubt that it affects physically and mentally the staff members, I live in complete uncertainty. I’m very careful not to be involved in considerations whether to advance the election or not, but it was only on March 10 last year that we approved the election results, and six days later we went into closure. We had to pay thousands more, and because of the closure we did everything from home “.
“We try to find a solution to every situation. For example, each ballot box will have a usher who will make sure that the voters keep their distance from each other; also, every ballot box placed in a large hall will have two screens, which will ensure faster entry of voters; each voter will be required to disinfect. “The commissioner will separate the members of the polling committee from the voters; and of course, the members of the polling committees and the voters will be required to wear masks.”
“We intend to devote a lot of time and thought to producing information broadcasts ahead of the election, in which we will try to give the public a sense of security to come and vote,” Adas notes regarding the population’s obvious fear of voting during this period. “In the broadcasts, we will detail the measures we are taking to prevent infection. By the way, in the previous elections, in March 2020, there was an increase in voting rates even though the Corona virus was already in the field. We all, as citizens, finally expect governmental stability. .
Point and drive
“They will have two options – either to vote at the polls that will open in 1,600 branches of Clalit Health Insurance Fund across the country, or to vote and travel. I reached an agreement with the CEO of Clalit Health Insurance Fund, Prof. Ehud Dodson, about opening polling stations in their branches. This, after we decided to give up the idea of setting up special tents for this purpose, which involved a huge financial cost. By law, we must set up one ballot box for the isolated and one for the patients in each of the 255 authorities across the country. “
The vote in “Vote and Travel” is intended to reduce the friction of sick and isolated people. According to the plan, a sick or isolated person will come from his home in his car to one of the tracks, such as Teddy Stadium in Jerusalem, and upon arrival he will meet a polling committee member. “, He will continue to the polling station, where a tray with all the ballot papers of the participating lists will be attached to the car window while he is covered with a screen, the vehicle owner will pull out the ballot paper of the list he supports and roll the ballot paper.”
“At this stage we do not know how many patients and isolates there will be on Election Day, because each day their number changes. However, it is likely that the number of isolates and patients will decrease until the election, due to vaccinations. According to our plan, there will be 500 polling stations and 500 patients. And ”.
“This is one of the big challenges we face, because we will only start receiving the ballot after the polls close at 22:00. We are considering extending the voting hours until midnight, but in such a situation a delay in the ballot is expected to reach the Knesset. We actually only have two days to work on counting. “The votes, that is, on Wednesday and Thursday, 3,500 people will work in the Knesset around the clock. On Friday, we will have to finish counting.”
“We will make this possible. Remember that the counting will be done while maintaining distance between the teams and taking additional precautions. In addition, we must also conduct the election purity check operation. The law requires us a week after the election to deliver the final results.”
Split the vote
“First of all, the electoral system is enshrined in basic laws, and to change the electoral system requires legislation. In practice, over the years, we have explored possibilities for computing different processes in the electoral system, and difficulties arose, such as cyber defense following what happened in the US. Also on the vote in the country. In addition, there is a fundamental principle of voting secrecy. On the Internet it is difficult to ensure secrecy because a manager can stand behind his employees and tell them who to vote for.
“For us, the staff of the Election Commission, voting via the Internet could have been much simpler than holding elections using the existing system, but the fact that most countries in Europe – including England, Italy, Germany and Spain – hold ballot elections, like ours, and many US countries, “In them, computerized voting, they went back to voting at the polls because of problems that arose.”
The Knesset section goes on vacation and will resume its appearance after the elections to the 24th Knesset.