Likud Internal Court Freezes Reserved Knesset Slot for Haim Katz

The Likud Party's internal court has issued an interim order blocking a reserved Knesset slate slot for Likud Central Committee Chairman Haim Katz. The freeze occurred during a secretariat vote to approve reserved slots for three ministers selected by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu: Haim Katz, Defense Minister Israel Katz, and Foreign Minister Gideon Sa'ar. The court noted that Haim Katz had already begun campaigning for the August 17 primaries; granting a reserved slot now could place him at a disadvantage if the decision is later overturned.

Prime Minister Netanyahu recently gained the authority to determine eight slots within the first 30 positions on the party list. The party stated that Defense Minister Israel Katz deserves a reserved slot to focus on security needs rather than politics, while Gideon Sa'ar's slot is part of a merger agreement between his party and Likud.

The move has sparked internal conflict. A center right source reports that MK Tally Gotliv called the decision a disgraceful move that mocks voters. A left leaning source frames the situation as an attempt by Netanyahu to shield loyalists from the primary election, noting that Defense Minister Israel Katz had ranked poorly in a recent internal poll. Opponents of the change argue that reserving slots pushes candidates who would otherwise score highly in the primaries further down the list.