Camera issue fails to capture suppression of Arab Israeli vote

It seems Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will do anything to avoid a hearing before the attorney general and to gain the immunity that will keep him from having to stand trial. But in order to promote a law that would grant him that immunity, he needs to head the next government. That is why he and his Likud party hit the pause button for the entire country by holding two consecutive elections. It is also why the Likud has made efforts to install cameras in polling stations throughout the Arab sector the hot issue of the day in the Central Election Committee’s deliberations.

The Likud has said that the cameras are intended to increase transparency and preserve the integrity of the election, but the real reason is to discourage potential Arab voters. Such voter suppression is similar to the way black voters were treated in the United States in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

This is exactly what Netanyahu wants. It is in his interest to keep the voting rate among the Arab population low, as it was in the April election at less than 50% (compared to a national rate of 68.5%). Polls suggest that if the voting rate among the Arab sector reaches that of the Jewish population this September, it will be practically impossible for Netanyahu to form a government, since he will not have a right-ultra-Orthodox bloc of 61 seats.

After the April election, Likud campaign manager Ofer Golan admitted that cameras had been installed in the Arab sector, explaining, “It was clear to us that this was a very powerful project that could change the outcome of the election.” The Kaizler-Inbar public relations firm, which was responsible for the move, boasted openly on Facebook that the cameras dropped the voting rate in the Arab sector to below 50%, or as they put it, “the lowest in years!” It is also worth noting that owner Sagi Kaizler is a former secretary general of the Samaria Settlers Committee.