Sohlberg hands Herzog official election results, warns doubting them is a danger

Justice Noam Sohlberg, chair of Israel's Central Elections Committee and deputy president of the Supreme Court, formally presented the official results of the October 27, 2026 election to President Isaac Herzog on November 4, 2026, at a ceremony at the President's Residence in Jerusalem. The Times of Israel reported that Sohlberg used the occasion to warn that efforts to question the outcome posed "a real danger" to Israeli democracy.

Herzog, speaking after he received the results, condemned what he described as "coarse" and "racist" expressions aimed at Arab citizens since the vote, according to The Times of Israel. He also said he had spoken that morning with the head of the Shin Bet security service and with the attorney general, and told the parties in the incoming Knesset that they would not be able to honour every pledge they had made.

What the handover means

The Central Elections Committee is the body that runs national elections in Israel and confirms their results. It is chaired by a Supreme Court justice. Delivering the results to the president is a formal step: The Times of Israel noted that the handover, combined with publication in the official state gazette, amounts to certification of the outcome. The election chose members of the 26th Knesset, Israel's parliament, according to a photo caption in The Jerusalem Post.

In Israel the president does not run the government but plays a central role in forming one. After certification, the president meets each elected party and asks whom it recommends for the task of assembling a coalition. Hebrew-language media refer to this round of meetings informally as the parade of recommenders.

Sohlberg's warning on fraud claims

The ceremony took place against the background of investigations into alleged electoral fraud, centred on the Arab sector. The Times of Israel reported that Likud and other parties in the outgoing coalition had argued that publication of the results should have been held up until those probes were complete.

Sohlberg rejected that position. He repeated his view that even if the suspicions were proven, the scale of any fraud would not be large enough to change the result. Quoted by N12 reporter Inbar Tvizer, he said Israelis must respect the democratic rules of the game. In a further remark carried by N12, Sohlberg said the suspicions did not justify casting a stain on the Arab sector as a whole, and that high turnout was something to welcome across all of Israeli society.

Ynet reported that the committee had announced it found no deviations affecting the integrity of the vote. Ynet also reported a claim by the Shin Bet, Israel's domestic security agency, that foreign influence had been advanced in the process, and said the agency had not presented evidence for it.

Herzog on the Arab community and the investigations

Herzog warned against generalisations about an entire public. According to N12, he said he greatly respects Arab society in Israel and values its contribution and its wish to integrate, and that such rhetoric has no place toward any community in the country.

At the same time, he said he had "full confidence" in the Shin Bet, the police and other law enforcement bodies to investigate the fraud allegations. He disclosed conversations with David Zini, who heads the Shin Bet, and with the attorney general, Gali Baharav-Miara, amid reports of serious disagreements between them over how the investigation is being handled. The attorney general is the government's chief legal officer and oversees criminal prosecutions. Herzog said he respects both officials. Ynet reported that he described the tension between them as built into their roles.

Consultations begin

Herzog was due to start meeting party delegations the same day. The Times of Israel reported that, breaking with usual practice, he would see the smaller parties first. The first delegation, from Religious Zionism, was due at 5 p.m., with Shas and then Yisrael Beytenu after it. Other factions were scheduled for the following day, with Gadi Eisenkot's Yashar party and then Likud closing the round in the evening.

Ahead of those meetings, Herzog said he expected the factions to understand that they cannot keep all of the commitments and promises they have made, a remark Ynet linked to the coming recommendations.

What the reports do not say

None of the reports describes evidence for the Shin Bet's claim of foreign influence, and none sets out the substance of the reported dispute between Zini and Baharav-Miara. The outcome of the fraud investigations is not yet known, nor is how Likud and its allies responded to the certification or whom each party will recommend to Herzog.