The High Court of Justice voted to delay the implementation of Amendment No. 12 to the Basic Law: The Government regarding the selection of the prime minister in case of incapacitation. It will, therefore, come into effect at the beginning of the 26th Knesset. 

Six out of 11 judges voted to delay the implementation.
"The decision of the judges of the High Court to publish judgments that are highly disputed even among themselves, while our soldiers are sacrificing their souls on the front, is an act that harms the unity of the people that is committed to this period," Justice Minister Yariv Levin stated after the court's announcement.
"A democratically elected prime minister is replaced by a ballot and not by a verdict."

In March 2023, the government passed an amendment to the Basic Law regarding the selection of the prime minister if they became incapacitated due to "physical or mental incapacity."

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu leads a government conference at the Kirya base in Tel Aviv on December 31, 2023 (credit: MIRIAM ALSTER/FLASH90)
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu leads a government conference at the Kirya base in Tel Aviv on December 31, 2023 (credit: MIRIAM ALSTER/FLASH90)

Two petitions were filed against the constitutionality of the amendment, mainly arguing that the amendment was enacted for personal reasons and intended to serve the personal interests of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

During September hearings on the matter, then-court president Esther Hayut stated that the court was not voting on the legality of the amendment, only whether it could be immediately implemented or would wait until the next Knesset.
Elections for the next Knesset will be held by October 27, 2026, at the latest.