Trust the Innovation Nation to come up with an out-of-the-box solution for the Jewish State as Israelis are sent back to the polls for an unprecedented fourth national election in barely two years while still battling a deadly global pandemic.
The election, set for March 23, 2021, presents special difficulties due to the danger of contagion from the coronavirus as Israeli voters exercise their right to choose the next government.
However, Central Elections Committee director-general Orly Adas presented a range of measures at a briefing with journalists that are intended to prevent the virus from spreading while voters cast their ballots.
“It’s our wish . . . to provide all eligible voters with the opportunity to vote,” Adas said, “but we will do all this while taking all possible precautions to safeguard the public’s health. This is the goal we have set for ourselves.”
Among the most innovative is the introduction of drive-thru balloting and other special voting set-ups to service voters who are unwell or who are under quarantine.
“The voter won’t get out of the vehicle, and a voting stand with ballots will be placed next to the car window,” she said of the drive-through plan. “He’ll then drive one and a half meters and a ballot box will be waiting for him. If two people come together — for example, a couple who are both sick — one of them will be asked to get out of the vehicle and wait outside while the other one votes,” she added.
Other measures include:
- Increasing the number of polling stations by some 30 percent
- Adding at least two more voting booths in every polling station
- Placing designated staff at each site to ensure compliance with Health Ministry guidelines, including masks and social distance
- Installing protective dividers between voters and poll workers, and between the ballot boxes
- Carrying out regular disinfection at the voting sites
- Providing face masks on site for those who arrive without them
- Maximum number of voters at each polling site will be limited to between 600 and 650
- Quarantined Israelis will vote at separate polling sites, including some drive-thru sites.