260 votes out of 240: The recount shaking the Likud

Our correspondent Moti Kastel reports on data from a polling station in Be'er Ya'akov that raises questions regarding the Likud primary results. According to the records, only 240 valid votes were cast, yet the published results credit Shashi Gueta with 260 votes—20 more than the total number of valid ballots. Gila Gamliel reportedly received 240 votes.

These findings add to the allegations of irregularities that have emerged in recent days surrounding the primary vote count, following shifts in results during re-checks. Against this backdrop, Gamliel petitioned the Likud party court, requesting to halt the recount in Be'er Ya'akov or, alternatively, to conduct a comprehensive review of all polling stations where irregularities were suspected. Judge Yitzhak Bam did not stop the count but expressed "discomfort" that, eight days after the elections, the final results remain undecided.

Simultaneously, another dispute has surfaced. Sources within the Likud headquarters claimed that a recount at a polling station in Kisra-Sumei uncovered hundreds of additional votes, which they assert shifted the outcome, placing MK Eti Atiya in the 25th spot and pushing Gamliel out of a realistic seat. Supporters of MK Haim Katz maintained that Atiya indeed leads Gamliel in the final tally.

In her petition, Gamliel argued that the election committee failed to address complaints from other candidates and insisted that all suspicious polling stations must be audited. The court has demanded that the party's legal advisor provide clarifications regarding the justification for the Be'er Ya'akov recount, the discrepancies between initial and published results, and why not all polling station protocols and summary sheets were scanned and made public.