'The ruling restores respect for voters' rights': Behind Solelberg's decision

Attorney Mike Blas explains on 103FM why observers are prohibited from reporting in real time who arrived at the polling station, and praises the ruling of Judge Noam Solelberg. According to him, the ruling restores voters' privacy and prevents exposure of sensitive information and political positions. He describes the hearing before the judge, the analysis of privacy protection laws, and the implications for sensitive polling places.

Attorney Mike Blas, interviewed on radio station 103FM, explained the background to the decision of the Chairman of the Central Elections Committee, Judge Noam Solelberg, to prohibit observers from reporting in real time who arrived at the polling station. According to him, the hearing before the judge included representatives of all relevant parties, the Privacy Protection Authority, and the Attorney General, who presented their legal positions. Blas described Solelberg's analysis of Israel's privacy protection laws and election laws, which led to the conclusion that there is a violation of the voter's privacy. He emphasized that the voter provides his details at the polling station, and the observer records them and uses them to encourage other voters, which constitutes use not for the purpose for which the details were provided. Blas also noted that Solelberg referred to sensitive polling places, such as places for people with disabilities, shelters for battered women, and hospitals, where additional information about the person is exposed. In addition, in polling stations where most voters belong to a particular party or bloc, or when the number of voters is low, one can approximately infer a person's political opinions. Blas praised the ruling and said it restores respect for voters' rights to privacy, and noted that observers are a kind of public servants for that day, and therefore they have no authority to use the information. He said that in the past, before the enactment of the Privacy Protection Law and the Basic Law: Human Dignity and Liberty, observers used to report who voted, but the legal framework has changed since then.