Election Committee to Review Fly&Vote Expatriate Transport Initiative
Supreme Court Justice Noam Solberg has scheduled an October 6 hearing on a Likud petition targeting the Fly&Vote initiative and AID Coalition over expatriate voter transport.
Supreme Court Justice Noam Solberg, serving as the Chairman of the Central Election Committee, has scheduled a hearing for October 6 regarding a petition filed by the Likud party against the AID Coalition and entities associated with the Fly&Vote initiative. The project organizes and coordinates flights to Israel for citizens residing abroad who wish to cast their ballots in the upcoming elections. Ahead of the hearing, Justice Solberg has requested factual and legal clarifications concerning the venture's operations, the services it provides, and the fees it charges.
Thus far, the petition proceedings have been conducted through written submissions. In his new ruling, Justice Solberg ordered an in-person hearing and requested the resolution of pending ambiguities, specifically addressing discrepancies between the AID Coalition's formal response and the promotional information published on the Fly&Vote website.
The petition was lodged by the Likud party through attorneys Ilan Bombach and Shaked Cohen. Likud is urging Justice Solberg to issue injunctions pursuant to the Elections (Propaganda Methods) Law and the Parties Financing Law. The respondents named in the petition include the America Israel Democracy Coalition (AID Coalition), the "Israeli Camp" project, Ora Pled-Nakash, Bat-El Belais Soltnik, Yonatan Bar-Sadeh, the Democrats party, the Attorney General, and the State Comptroller's Office.
A central legal question raised in the petition is whether the Fly&Vote initiative and its assistance to expatriate Israelis fall under the regulatory restrictions of campaign propaganda and party financing laws. Likud contends that organized efforts to bring overseas citizens to Israel for voting purposes necessitate rigorous legal scrutiny. Conversely, Fly&Vote presents itself as a non-partisan initiative designed solely to help eligible citizens exercise their constitutional right to vote. According to its terms, the project does not verify participants' intended votes, conditions no assistance on political stances, and requires travelers to bear their own travel expenses.
Justice Solberg instructed the AID Coalition to detail each proposed service offered to applicants, specifying its nature, sequential workflow, and whether the action is actively executed in practice. The project's website outlines assistance with voter eligibility checks, document verification, and the coordination of flights to Israel. Furthermore, the organization must precisely define what constitutes an "advance payment contribution" reportedly collected from applicants—detailing the exact fee amount, its purpose, and the subsequent handling of those funds.
At this preliminary stage, Justice Solberg has not determined whether the initiative's activities are flawed or violate regulations regarding discrepancies between filings and actual practices. He is seeking detailed disclosures merely to ascertain the operational mechanics and the exact nature of the disputed services and financial transactions.
The petition also encompasses allegations concerning Fly&AID, a separate project operated by the AID Coalition. While Fly&Vote focuses on organizing and coordinating the return of expatriates for the elections, Fly&AID engages in volunteer activities within Israel, offering participants a "service scholarship" of $250 per day of activity, for up to three days. Regarding Fly&Vote, Solberg demanded comprehensive supplementary briefings from the AID Coalition, whereas regarding Fly&AID, he instructed Likud to state whether it agrees to withdraw this specific segment from the petition following the organization's clarifications.
Jurisdictional Questions and Hearing Schedule
Additionally, the roster of respondents may shrink. Following submitted responses, Justice Solberg instructed Likud to declare whether it consents to removing the "Israeli Camp" project, Pled-Nakash, Belais Soltnik, Bar-Sadeh, and the Democrats party from the respondents list.
The AID Coalition is a United States-based non-profit organization, and the "Israeli Camp" presents itself as an affiliate project developed under its umbrella. Ora Pled-Nakash and Bat-El Belais Soltnik, linked to these entities, were prominent activists in the mass protests against the judicial overhaul promoted by the government. Likud attributes significant weight to this background in its allegations regarding the political nature of the operations.
Justice Solberg also raised a fundamental question regarding the jurisdictional scope of his authority as Chairman of the Central Election Committee. He instructed both Likud and the AID Coalition to explicitly address whether the Elections (Propaganda Methods) Law empowers him to issue binding orders against individuals or corporations located outside Israel concerning activities conducted abroad. Both parties must outline which Fly&Vote operations occur within Israel and which take place internationally. The Attorney General has been asked to formulate a principled legal stance on this jurisdictional dilemma.
Because the AID Coalition is an American entity, the jurisdictional ruling could decisively impact the entire petition. If it is determined that the Chairman's authority does not extend to foreign-based operations conducted by international bodies, the court will need to meticulously dissect which Fly&Vote activities occur domestically and whether injunctions can be legally applied to them.
Likud, the AID Coalition, and the Attorney General are required to submit their supplementary legal briefs by October 4 at 16:00. The formal hearing will take place on October 6 at 13:00 in the Constitution, Law, and Justice Committee hall at the Knesset building. It will be attended by legal counsels representing Likud, respondents 1 through 6, and the Attorney General's Office. Respondents 3 through 5, alongside representatives of the State Comptroller's Office, are also permitted to attend if they so choose.
Justice Solberg's ruling does not constitute a final judgment on Likud's allegations against Fly&Vote. He has not yet ruled that the initiative's activities are unlawful or that participants received illicit material benefits. The October 6 hearing will address the venture's actual operations, discrepancies between filings and online data, fees collected from participants, the territorial division of operations between Israel and abroad, and the jurisdictional limits concerning foreign entities. Hitherto handled entirely in writing, the proceedings will transition to oral arguments before Justice Solberg.
