Likud candidate Michael Ratzon intends to appeal to the Tel Aviv district court Sunday to reinstate him in spot 24 on the Likud election list. If Ratzon succeeds, the Likud would probably have to reinstate candidate Moshe Feiglin to spot 20.
In Likud primaries held two weeks ago, Jewish Leadership faction head Moshe Feiglin was originally assigned to spot 20 - as the woman for whom it had been reserved had received an even higher spot, based on her vote total. Candidates Michael Ratzon and Ehud Yatom received spots 24 and 29, respectively, for a similar reason. Likud leader Binyamin Netanyahu, who had waged a vicious battle against Feiglin’s candidacy, seemed to have lost, as Feiglin had reached a spot on the Likud list which would all but guarantee him a seat in the 18th Knesset.
Immediately after the primaries, however, Likud candidate Ofir Akunis, who had been voted into a spot in the mid-20's reserved for the Tel Aviv region, appealed to the Likud elections court to take Feiglin’s place. He claimed that spots 20, 24, and 29 should be given to regional representatives rather than national ones. The elections court accepted his claim and moved Feiglin, Ratzon and Yatom back into spots 36-38 – all but taking away their chances to enter the next Knesset.
Feiglin publicly announced that he would not appeal the decision, claiming that he had no confidence in the court system. Nevertheless, Ratzon opted to appeal to the Likud elections court to overturn its decision and stated that the Likud elections board had acted improperly. Late Thursday night, the Likud Court rejected Ratzon’s appeal.
Ratzon has now announced his intention to appeal to the Tel Aviv District Court. “The unfortunate actions [of the Likud] do not leave me any choice except to turn to an unbiased arbiter,” Ratzon said. “The damage done to the Likud through their actions is already showing up in the polls indicating that the Likud is losing strength.”
Ratzon, who fought Ariel Sharon's Disengagement plan in his one term as a Knesset Member, added that he would continue his fight even if that meant going all the way to the Supreme Court. If Ratzon’s appeal is successful, Feiglin would presumably also return to his original spot on the elections list and most likely enter the Knesset in the coming elections.