While Israelis may feel tense in an endless time curve as they enter the country’s fourth election in two years, this time Election Day is expected to feel like completely different, under layers and fears of the pandemic coronavirus disease.
With more than 380,000 Israelis infected with the virus and more than 3,000 deaths since the pandemic began, officials hope the COVID-19 vaccines launched this week will leave the country free of all infections -discharged behind it. But that will not happen before Israel goes to the polls at the end of March.
Israeli quarantine takes ballot at Ashkelon pop-up polling station in March 2020 elections
(Photo: Avi Rokah)
On Tuesday, hours before Knesset was disbanded, the committee in charge called for an explanation of the rules and guidelines for Election Day for a marathon session.
With the date approaching and tensions mounting, lawmakers set out a series of resolutions intended to allow the country to elect its next parliament amid health crises.
“There was a real divide between health officials and the political side,” said Dr. Hagai Levine, a member of the government’s coronavirus action group who attended the emergency meeting.
Prof. Hagai levine
(Photo: ynet)
“At the same time, the Ministry of Health basically said ‘we are in charge – it’s a health issue, we will make the rules,'” said Levine, associate professor of epidemiology at the University. Hebrew Jerusalem.
“On the other hand, members of the electoral committee explained that this is a democratic issue, that everyone’s right to vote must be upheld and that everyone should change to make that possible,” he said. saying.
In one weather exchange, Dr. Sharon Alroy-Preis, head of public health services at the Ministry of Health, accused the committee of endangering the public.
“You’re talking about tens of thousands of confirmed patients coming out to vote. That’s a big risk,” she said.
Orly Adas, chief executive of the Central Electoral Commission, said in response that the panel will “do what we can to prevent disease on Election Day.”
Returning officers in defense gear will be counting votes from people in coronavirus quarantines for the March 2020 election
(Photo: Central Elections Committee)
Levine says a lot of the pressure is due to the time constraints.
“You can’t change the rules of the game half way through. Knesset had to decide how these elections would be conducted before he dissolved himself. You can’t create new voting methods or protocols after elections have taken place. called, “he said.
He also believes “In the best case scenario, three million people will have been vaccinated before Election Day. In that scenario, we will be in a much better position, but the virus will not go away. out of sight. “
The committee’s decisions include the installation of a designated polling booth in every town and village for infectious voters only, and a separate booth for those in quarantine use.
Around 350 nursing homes will also be equipped with their own polling stations, to allow older people to vote without consulting the public.
“We want people to be safe when they vote,” said Giora Pordes, spokesman for the Central Electoral Commission.
“The coronavirus is a big reason to make things unknown. We are just beginning the process of putting things in order, to find out how to do this. We are working on and we expect to introduce a budget for approval in mid-January 2021. “
On Tuesday, the Commission estimated the cost of protective gear and thousands of polling stations and polling staff reached at least NIS 65 million (approximately $ 20.2 million).
Central Electoral Commission staff counting votes during the March 2020 election
(Photo: Shaul Golan)
But officials fear not only election day, but also the weeks before that. Keeping a close eye on the latest major U.S. elections, members of an election commission must decide whether to block political rallies and other events before going to the polls.
“Are you blocking those and hurting the democratic process, or letting go and making diseases worse? It’s a very difficult balancing act of two basic rights,” Levine adds. say.
“The most important thing is to keep people safe and take steps as much as we can,” Pordes wants.
Health officials remain optimistic that with proper preparation and planning, Israel will recover through the coming months with minimal damage.
“But that requires professionalism, and unfortunately because of this political side, any decision, or at least such suspicions, will be influenced by political issues,” Levine says.