Exclusive: Israel prepares for election day under missile fire as committee drafts attack protocols

Israel's Central Elections Committee is preparing emergency procedures to ensure the country's upcoming elections can continue even if rocket attacks disrupt voting or ballot counting, according to an exclusive report first published by i24NEWS Hebrew on Wednesday.

The report revealed that the committee is drafting special emergency regulations in response to the possibility of rocket fire during election day. The preparations come amid recent warnings by Shin Bet chief David Zini, who has cautioned about the potential for foreign interference in the electoral process.

The proposed regulations are intended to protect the integrity of the vote while allowing election officials to securely preserve ballots if polling stations are forced to suspend operations because of security threats.

If a rocket siren sounds during voting, polling would immediately stop while the election integrity supervisor activates a camera to document the process.

Ballots, envelopes and all voting materials would then be placed inside a specially designated emergency envelope, which would be sealed with adhesive. The polling station secretary would be responsible for safeguarding the sealed envelope, while the election integrity supervisor would take custody of the secured ballot box until voting can safely resume.

The contingency plans also extend to the ballot-counting process. According to the report, election workers would conduct the count on a specially designed table covering that would enable them to quickly gather and secure ballots, envelopes and tally sheets if a rocket siren interrupts the count.

The measure is intended to ensure that all election materials remain protected and can be returned to the counting process without compromising the integrity of the results.

The report further states that the committee is expected to approve a provision allowing Israeli soldiers serving on the front lines to cast their ballots using their military dog tags as a form of identification, an arrangement aimed at ensuring service members are able to participate in the election despite operational conditions.

The emergency procedures have not yet been formally adopted but are expected to be approved by the Central Elections Committee ahead of election day.