United Arab List (Ra'am)
Ra'am – United Arab List- Leader
- Mansour Abbas
- List
- Ra'am – United Arab List
- Researched as of
- October 7, 2026
Overview
Name and ballot. The party is registered as "United Arab List" (רשימת האיחוד הערבי) and is widely known by its Hebrew acronym, Ra'am. For the 27 October 2026 election it runs alone, not on a joint list, under the name "Ra'am – United Arab List" with the ballot letters עם [1, 76]. The Central Elections Committee (CEC) candidate-list page records that the list was submitted by the United Arab List party alone [1].
Founding and roots. Ra'am was founded in 1996 [22]. It grew out of the southern branch of the Islamic Movement in Israel, a religious-political movement among Muslim citizens of Israel [22, 74]. For most of its history, the movement's religious council (the Shura Council) set the party's policy and chose its Knesset candidates [10, 11]. In December 2025, party leader Mansour Abbas announced that Ra'am would cut its institutional ties with the Shura Council and become a "completely civic party, with separate institutions" [7]. The separation was formally completed in summer 2026 (Haaretz reported the announcement on 27 July 2026; candidate Yoav Segalovitz dated its completion to the party conference of 22 August 2026) [11, 21]. Since then the party's general conference, not the religious council, chooses its candidates and makes its political decisions [10, 11]. In August 2026 Abbas said that about 60% of Ra'am voters belong to the Islamic Movement, and Yahya Dahamsha, head of the party's political department, said Ra'am will not initiate or support legislation that conflicts with Islamic law [12].
Ideology. Ra'am describes itself as a conservative party with an Islamic religious outlook. Its stated priorities are practical problems of Arab citizens: crime and violence, planning and the demolition of homes built without permits, budgets for Arab local authorities, and equality [10, 74]. It supports the creation of a Palestinian state and an end to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict [74, 15]. Ra'am has said for years that it does not rule out coalition partners on either the political left or right [74]. In 2021 it became the first independent Arab party to join a governing coalition, the Bennett-Lapid government [32, 31].
Base of support. The party's support comes mainly from Muslim Arab citizens, with a strong base among the Bedouin communities of the Negev in southern Israel [31]. Its 2026 slate was built to balance candidates from three regions: the Galilee in the north, the "Triangle" (Arab towns in central Israel), and the Negev [10]. Since January 2026 the party has been open to Jewish members and candidates, and its number 2 for 2026 is Yoav Segalovitz, a Jewish former police commander and former Yesh Atid MK [9, 18, 1].
Knesset seats. Ra'am holds 5 seats in the outgoing 25th Knesset [7]. In the March 2021 election, running on its own after leaving the Joint List, it won 4 seats [30, 25].
History of joint runs and splits. Ra'am is running alone in 2026, but it has a long record of joint lists with other Arab-majority parties, several of which split after elections. Knesset faction records show [24, 25]:
- 2015: Ra'am was one of four parties (with Hadash, Balad and Ta'al) that formed the Joint List [28, 6].
- April 2019: Ra'am ran on a joint list with Balad. On 2 June 2019, about a month after the 21st Knesset was sworn in, the two split into separate Knesset factions [24].
- September 2019: Ra'am ran again within the four-party Joint List. On 30 December 2019 Ra'am was registered as a separate faction [24].
- March 2020: Ra'am again sat in the Joint List faction until 28 January 2021, when the Knesset House Committee approved the Joint List's breakup after talks with Ra'am failed. The other parties' leaders said the split was over Abbas's moves toward cooperation with then-Prime Minister Netanyahu [25, 24]. Ra'am ran alone in March 2021 and again in 2022, when the Joint List did not reunite [30, 28].
- 2026: On 22 January 2026 the leaders of Ra'am, Hadash, Ta'al and Balad signed a declaration in Sakhnin committing to re-establish the Joint List [26]. In May 2026 Ra'am said it would join only a "technical" list in which each party keeps its own platform and freedom of action, because it wanted to stay free to join a coalition after the election [28]. On 10 June 2026 the other three parties announced they would go ahead without Ra'am [29]. On 2 August 2026 Abbas said: "The option of a joint list of four parties is off the table" [10].
The 2026 disqualification case. On 23 September 2026 the CEC voted 18–5, with one abstention, to bar Ra'am from the election. The requests came from Likud, Otzma Yehudit and the Choosing Life Forum, an organization representing victims of terror [5, 6]. The petitioners cited section 7A of Basic Law: The Knesset. This section allows a list to be barred if it rejects Israel's existence as a Jewish and democratic state, incites racism, or supports armed struggle against Israel by an enemy state or terrorist organization [6]. The CEC barred Ra'am on all three grounds [2]. The Attorney General's office opposed the disqualification. It said the quotations cited in the requests "demonstrate that MK Mansour Abbas recognizes Israel's Jewish character," and that the incitement allegations rested on "very thin" evidence [5]. On 2 October 2026 a nine-justice panel of the Supreme Court unanimously overturned the CEC decision. It ruled that the material did not meet the legal standard for barring a list [2, 3, 4]. Ra'am may therefore run [2].
Polling
Polling average: 4.1% (as of October 2, 2026). Source: Mean of 5 polls published 2026-09-28 to 2026-10-02
Polls included in the average
- Lazar Research (led by Dr. Menachem Lazar) · Maariv · 2026-09-30–10-01 · 602 respondents · margin of error ±4.0% · published Oct 2, 2026
- Next Data · Channel 14 (Arutz Achshav 14) · 2026-10-01 · 2145 respondents · margin of error ±2.1% · published Oct 1, 2026
- Direct Polls (led by Tzuriel Sharon) · i24NEWS (Middle East News 24 Ltd.) · 2026-10-01 · 504 respondents · margin of error ±4.3% · published Oct 1, 2026
- Maagar Mochot (led by Prof. Yitzhak Katz) · Channel 16 · 2026-09-29 · 550 respondents · margin of error ±4.2% · published Sep 29, 2026
- Next Data · Channel 14 (Arutz Achshav 14) · 2026-09-28 · 573 respondents · margin of error ±4.1% · published Sep 28, 2026
Leadership and key candidates
Ra'am submitted its list on 7 September 2026 [6]. The list as published by the CEC is headed by the following candidates [1]. Ra'am chose its top five candidates at its party conference on 22 August 2026 in Tayibe, attended by about 1,050 members, which the party called its first-ever primary [14, 13]. Abbas said Ra'am had held internal elections before, but this was the first under a party structure separate from the Shura Council [10].
- Mansour Abbas (party leader). A dentist by training from the village of al-Maghar in the Galilee [30, 31]. He joined the Islamic Movement as a student at the Hebrew University [30]. He has been an MK since April 2019 [24] and has led Ra'am in the Knesset since 2019 [31]. Knesset records show he served as a Deputy Speaker of the Knesset in 2020–2021 and again in 2021–2022. From 2020 to 2021 he chaired the Knesset's special committee on eradicating crime in Arab society [24]. In June 2021 he signed the coalition agreement that brought Ra'am into the Bennett-Lapid government [32, 33]. In the 25th Knesset he sat on the Constitution, Law and Justice Committee and on joint committees on police wiretapping and spyware [24].
- Yoav Segalovitz. A Jewish former police commander who headed the Israel Police Investigations and Intelligence Division and set up the Lahav 433 unit against organized crime [17, 20]. He was a Yesh Atid MK and served as Deputy Minister of Internal Security from June 2021 to December 2022 [24]. In that role he oversaw a government task force against violence in Arab communities [17]. He left Yesh Atid and the Knesset in August 2026 (his Knesset term ended on 11 August 2026) [24, 22]. He describes himself as "a Jewish, secular Zionist" [20]. He is running on Ra'am's slate and joining its Knesset faction without formally joining the party [20, 16]. He says he will "go my own way" on issues where he disagrees with the party [21].
- Walid Taha. An MK since October 2019 and chair of the Ra'am Knesset faction since 2021 [24]. In the Bennett-Lapid coalition he chaired the Knesset Interior and Environmental Protection Committee from September 2021 to November 2022 [24]. He sponsored the "electricity law" of January 2022, which allowed homes built without permits in Arab communities to be connected to the electricity grid [36].
- Walid Alhwashla. An MK since November 2022, from the Bedouin community in the Negev [12, 24]. In the 25th Knesset he sat on the National Security Committee, the State Control Committee and the special committee for developing the Negev and Galilee [24].
- Iman Khatib-Yassin. An MK in 2020–2021 and again since August 2021 [24]. She chaired a Knesset subcommittee on public transport in Arab society (2020–2021) and a subcommittee on placing Arab teachers in schools (2021–2022). In the 25th Knesset she sat on the Finance Committee and the Committee on the Status of Women and Gender Equality [24].
The rest of the top of the list includes current MK Yasser Hujirat (6), Ibrahim al-Turi (7), Abd al-Karim Masri (8) and Abd al-Karim Azzam (9) [1].
Positions on the issues
Cost of living
Ra'am's record on the cost of living is mainly in private bills and opposition motions. It has no detailed published plan on the subject that could be found.
- Action: In the 25th Knesset, Mansour Abbas was among the initiators of private bills to raise the minimum wage and link it to labour productivity, and to set a reduced VAT rate on basic food products. Neither bill passed [70].
- Action: Ra'am, jointly with Hadash-Ta'al, filed no-confidence motions against the government over "the government's failure to deal with the cost of living" (20 January 2025) and over "the economic situation, the cost of living and its effect on Arab society" (22 June 2026) [54].
- Action: Ra'am MKs voted against the state budgets for 2025 (24 March 2025; four voted against and Iman Khatib-Yassin was not recorded) and 2026 (30 March 2026; all five against) [53].
- Statement: In August 2026 Ra'am listed its priorities as crime, home demolitions, racism and inequality, without a separate cost-of-living program [10].
Closest option(s): Direct help for households, such as a higher minimum wage (direct-support-for-households). The evidence is thin and mixed: the bill to cut VAT on basic food also points to tax cuts on essentials (cut-taxes-and-government-spending).
Crime in Arab society
Fighting crime in Arab communities is Ra'am's central declared issue [10, 74]. Its position on bringing in the Shin Bet (Israel's internal security service) has changed over time.
- Action: The June 2021 coalition agreement Ra'am signed included a NIS 2.5 billion plan to reduce crime and violence in Arab society through 2026 [33]. In October 2021 the government approved NIS 2.4 billion over five years for this purpose (Government Decision 549), alongside the development plan [34]. According to a September 2026 Zman Yisrael review, the crime plan was fully carried out only in 2022, when killings in Arab society fell from 126 (2021) to 108. After the government changed, the programs were scaled back, and the number of killings rose to 244 in 2023, 230 in 2024 and 252 in 2025 [39]. (Figures from the Abraham Initiatives, cited by the JTA, give 116 killings for 2022 [22].)
- Statement: In October 2021, as a coalition partner, Abbas came out in favour of Prime Minister Bennett's plan to involve the Shin Bet in fighting crime in Arab communities, citing the severity of the crisis and the urgent need for security in Arab communities [40].
- Statement: In June 2023, in opposition, Abbas rejected proposals to bring the Shin Bet into the fight against crime, saying the idea "points to an attitude that doesn't deal with the issue seriously." He called on the government to "immediately deploy resources to combat crime in Arab society" and to adopt a new cabinet decision putting the issue at the top of its priorities [41].
- Statement: In September 2023 Abbas proposed house arrest and electronic monitoring of known offenders, steps to prevent criminals from influencing local elections, and eliminating their economic ventures. He said national law enforcement had to take more responsibility instead of leaving the issue to local authorities [42].
- Action: On 11 December 2024 the Knesset passed the Protection of the Public from Crime Organizations Law. It lets courts issue restriction orders, such as house arrest, against members of crime organizations based on a police intelligence assessment. The vote was 32 in favour, with no votes against [46]. Ra'am MKs did not vote in favour: two abstained and two registered as present without voting [53].
- Action: Ra'am filed or co-filed repeated no-confidence motions on crime, for example "violence and crime are raging in Arab society without an adequate response from the government" (24 July 2023) and "the continuing failure in fighting crime and murders in Arab society" (6 July 2026) [54]. In January 2026 Abbas opened a Knesset debate, signed by 40 MKs, on "the government's ongoing failure to eradicate violence and crime" in Arab society [45].
- Context: In July 2026 the government approved moving about NIS 497 million from the five-year development plan for Arab communities (Government Decision 550) to the Shin Bet and the police for the fight against crime [44, 43]. No public reaction by Ra'am to this specific decision was found in the reports reviewed [43, 44].
- Statement: Candidate Yoav Segalovitz wants to restore the inter-agency anti-crime programs he oversaw in 2021–2022 [20]. He calls for broad enforcement against "firearms, protection rackets, reckless driving," and for designated crime "focus places" such as Rahat. For crime among young people he hopes that "a transition year and two years of civilian service" will help [21]. He has said civilian service for young Arab citizens should not be imposed by the government [20]. In his campaign launch he said effective crime-fighting requires "cooperation between all state authorities and local authorities" [19].
- Change over time: As a coalition partner in October 2021 Abbas supported involving the Shin Bet in fighting crime [40], but in June 2023, in opposition, he said Shin Bet involvement pointed to an approach that does not deal with the issue seriously [41]. Both are statements; no vote or other action by Ra'am on Shin Bet involvement was found.
Closest option(s): The evidence is mixed. Ra'am's main demands combine more police resources and enforcement under normal law (more-police-resources-normal-law) with restoring budgets for Arab communities (invest-in-arab-communities-first). Its 2021 support for Shin Bet involvement matched the extraordinary-measures approach (emergency-powers-shin-bet), but it has not repeated that position since 2023.
Gaza Strip policy
- Statement: On 7 October 2023 Abbas was the first Arab political leader to respond publicly. He called on Arab citizens to "exert restraint," obey the law and keep public order [60]. In November 2023 he condemned the Hamas attack, saying it was "against everything we believe in" and that "the values of Islam oblige us not to take women, children and the elderly as captives" [61].
- Statement: In a CNN interview in late November 2023 Abbas said "the Palestinian militant groups need to throw down their arms" and work with the Palestinian Authority. Two days later the party issued a clarification that a future Palestinian state "will negate the arming of Palestinian factions" [62].
- Statement: In May 2024 Ra'am said actions in Gaza, including "the starving of children and women, cutting off humanitarian aid, bombing hospitals and mosques," amount to war crimes [63]. In July 2024 Abbas said in the Knesset: "I certainly want to stop the war" [64]. In August 2024 the party condemned an IDF strike on a school compound in Gaza and called on the international community to stop the war [65].
- Action: Ra'am co-filed no-confidence motions accusing the government of thwarting the hostage deal and ceasefire (17 February 2025) and of "escalating the fighting in Gaza and thwarting the continuation of the ceasefire agreement" (5 May 2025) [54, 51].
- Action: Ra'am MKs voted against the laws ending UNRWA's operations in Israel (28 October 2024) and against bills to define the Gaza Strip as a hostile area and ban trade with it (July 2025 and February 2026) [51].
- Statement: In a radio interview on 10 November 2025 Abbas repeatedly declined to say whether he supports disarming Hamas, and ended the interview [66]. In a later clarification he described his vision as "a new security and governance reality" in Gaza, with international forces replacing the current rule, trained Palestinian forces, and a peace agreement [66]. In December 2025 the Times of Israel reported that he had endorsed US plans to demilitarize Gaza but declined to call explicitly for Hamas's destruction [7].
- Statement: As of September 2026 Abbas has condemned the October 7 attack but has not called Hamas a terror organization. In a Channel 12 interview he explained: "If I say Hamas must be destroyed, they'll interpret it as two million Palestinians in Gaza should be destroyed" [67].
Closest option(s): Move forward with an international arrangement: an international force, a new Palestinian administration and an end to the war (advance-international-arrangement). Some of Ra'am's statements, such as calls to stop the war and condemnations of IDF strikes, also overlap with ending the war completely (end-war-full-withdrawal).
Haredi military enlistment
Ra'am's votes on Haredi enlistment have changed with the content of the bills. It refused to state a position in the 2026 campaign.
- Action: As a coalition member, Ra'am voted in January 2022 for the Bennett-Lapid government's bills to integrate yeshiva students into military service. These bills set yearly enlistment targets. On 17 January 2022 three Ra'am MKs voted for a version that failed in a 54–54 tie. On 31 January 2022 Abbas and Taha voted for the revised government bill, which passed its first reading 51–48 [48, 56].
- Action: On 11 June 2024 all five Ra'am MKs voted against the Netanyahu government's motion to apply "continuity" to that bill, which let it resume from where it had stopped in the previous Knesset [48].
- Change over time: Abbas and Taha voted for the bill in January 2022 and against reviving it in June 2024 [48]. The two votes were cast in different Knessets, the first as part of the coalition and the second in the opposition, with the October 7 attack and the war in between. No statement by Ra'am explaining the difference between the two votes was found.
- Statement: In November 2025, as the coalition sought votes for its enlistment bill, Ra'am officials said they were "not closing the door to talks" but would "certainly not save this coalition" if the bill came to a vote in its form at the time [57].
- Action: On 14 July 2026 the Knesset passed Security Service Law (Amendment 28 – temporary provision). It freezes arrest, investigation and enforcement against yeshiva students who study full time until 30 November 2026, "in recognition of the importance of Torah study" [55]. All five Ra'am MKs voted against it [48]. The law passed 58–54 [48]. The High Court of Justice froze the law the next day and struck it down on 3 September 2026 [89].
- Statement: In September 2026 Ra'am declined to answer Ynet's question about its plan for Haredi enlistment. Ynet reported that Ra'am opposes any enlistment law that would require young Arab citizens to serve in the IDF or do civilian service [56].
Closest option(s): Tentative: gradual enlistment with yearly targets (gradual-targets-by-agreement). The mapping is tentative because it rests on indirect evidence: Ra'am's January 2022 votes as a coalition member. The party has not stated a current position on whether Haredi yeshiva students should serve, and its later votes against the government's bills do not show one.
Housing
Ra'am's housing agenda focuses on Arab communities: building permits, land allocation, and stopping the demolition of homes built without permits.
- Action: The June 2021 coalition agreement committed the government to market 10,000 housing units a year in Arab communities [33]. It also extended a freeze on enforcement against illegal construction until the end of 2024 and provided for examining the cancellation of fines [33]. The agreement also covered amending the 2017 Kaminitz Law [32]. (The Kaminitz Law, an amendment to the Planning and Building Law, toughened enforcement against illegal construction.)
- Action: In January 2022 the Knesset passed the "electricity law," sponsored by Ra'am MK Walid Taha, by 61 votes with 3 abstentions. It lets the Interior Minister allow homes built before 2018 without permits to be connected to electricity, water and telephone [36]. A 2026 review put the number of homes connected at about 9,000 [39].
- Action: In May 2022 Ra'am announced an agreement under which the government would not demolish buildings of up to 70 square metres in unrecognized villages, or fine their owners [37].
- Action: In the 25th Knesset Abbas was among the initiators of bills for: special planning provisions for Arab towns; equal allocation of state land by the Israel Land Authority (the government body that manages most land in Israel) to the Arab population; limiting demolition and penalties for illegal building in Arab communities; and letting people withdraw savings from a study fund (a tax-advantaged savings plan) to buy a first apartment. None became law [70].
- Action: Ra'am filed or co-filed no-confidence motions over "a policy of persecution through home demolitions in the Negev and all of Arab society" (3 June 2024), over demolitions and Bedouin land (13 January 2025 and 8 June 2026), and over "the policy of demolition, exclusion and planning suffocation" (15 June 2026) [54].
Closest option(s): Speed up planning and building permits and release state land, applied mainly to Arab communities (speed-up-planning-and-construction). The first-apartment bill also matches direct help for buyers (direct-help-for-buyers).
Iran, Hezbollah and the region
No documented position found. Searches were run in Hebrew and English for statements by Mansour Abbas and other Ra'am MKs on the June 2025 war with Iran (including the Iranian missile strike on Tamra), the war with Iran that began in February 2026, Hezbollah and the ground operation in southern Lebanon. We also checked Ra'am's Knesset motions and votes. A second search during fact-checking in October 2026 also found no statement. A June 2025 report on the Israeli opposition's response to the Iran conflict said no direct statement had been issued by Abbas [75]. Ra'am's no-confidence motions in this period dealt with Gaza and Judea and Samaria, and with the lack of public bomb shelters in Arab communities [54]. On 16 June 2025, during the war with Iran, Ra'am and Hadash-Ta'al filed a no-confidence motion against "a government leading a policy of endless war and annexation of the territories without a diplomatic horizon" [54]. This motion signals general opposition to prolonged war, but no position specific to Iran or Hezbollah.
Judea and Samaria
- Statement: Ra'am calls for Palestinian statehood and an end to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict [74]. In 2022 Abbas said Ra'am would focus on pressing problems in Arab society without giving up its support for Palestinian statehood [31].
- Statement: At Ra'am's conference on 22 August 2026 Abbas said a Palestinian state is "a reality, which most of the world recognizes, with the exception of the United States and Israel," and called on Israel to recognize it and work toward peace and an end to the conflict [15, 14]. He said Arab citizens of Israel are "a bridge to achieving peace" [14]. In an interview the next day he repeated that "the State of Palestine exists and is recognized by most of the world" [16].
- Statement: In December 2021 Abbas said: "Israel was born as a Jewish state... The question is not about the state's identity — but what the status of Arab citizens will be in it" [69].
- Action: On 18 July 2024 Ra'am MKs voted against a Knesset resolution opposing the creation of a Palestinian state, which passed 68–9, and voted for Ra'am's own alternative resolution, which was rejected 9–61 [50].
- Action: On 30 October 2024 four Ra'am MKs voted for a bill for a "Basic Law: Recognition of a Palestinian State," which was defeated 9–47 [50].
- Action: On 22 October 2025 Ra'am MKs voted against two bills to apply Israeli sovereignty: one on Judea and Samaria (which passed a preliminary vote 25–24) and one on Ma'ale Adumim [50].
- Action: Ra'am co-filed no-confidence motions against a government policy "that deliberately prevents any horizon of historic compromise between the two peoples" (27 January 2025) and against "endless war and annexation of the territories" (16 June 2025) [54].
- No statement was found in which Ra'am sets out the borders of a Palestinian state, the fate of the settlements or the status of Jerusalem.
Closest option(s): Two states through a negotiated agreement. The evidence does not say whether Ra'am supports land swaps that keep the large settlement blocs (separation-two-states) or the exact pre-1967 border (two-states-pre-1967-border).
Judicial system
- Action: Ra'am MKs voted against the first reading of the bill to change how judges are chosen (20 February 2023, passed 63–47) and against the first reading of the bill cancelling the "reasonableness" ground for judicial review (11 July 2023, passed 64–56) [47]. No Ra'am MK was recorded in the final vote on the reasonableness law on 24 July 2023, which passed 64–0 [47].
- Action: On 27 March 2025, in the final vote on the Basic Law amendment changing the judicial selection committee, which passed 67–1, Walid Alhwashla was recorded as present but not voting, and no other Ra'am MK was recorded. In the final vote on the accompanying Courts Law amendment the same day, which passed 64–0, Abbas was recorded as present but not voting [47].
- Action: On 29 October 2025 Ra'am MKs voted against a bill to split the role of the attorney general, which passed its preliminary reading 61–46 [47].
- Statement: In May 2023, during the compromise talks at the President's Residence, Abbas said: "We want to strengthen the judicial system and reinforce it against parliamentary tyranny." He also said there could be "no agreement alongside violence," linking any support to action against crime in Arab society [59].
- Statement: In September 2026 Ra'am declined to give Ynet a current position on the changes to the judicial system. Ynet noted that Abbas had said "no branch of government should hold absolute power," and had previously suggested a judicial selection committee that includes representatives of the opposition and of Arab society, possibly with an Arab judge [58].
Closest option(s): Ra'am voted against the main changes [47] but has not called for reversing the new judicial selection law. Its stated approach of reaching agreed rules on how judges are chosen is closest to a broad agreed framework (broad-agreed-constitutional-framework). Its votes also overlap with protecting the courts' independence (repeal-changes-protect-independence).
October 7 inquiry
- Action: Ra'am MKs repeatedly voted for opposition bills to set up a state commission of inquiry into October 7 under the existing law, in which the President of the Supreme Court picks the members. They did so on 17 July 2024, 12 November 2025 and 1 July 2026. (On one of the three bills voted on 12 November 2025, Abbas voted for and two Ra'am MKs were recorded as present but not voting.) On 19 March 2025 the Ra'am MKs who voted also supported a bill requiring a state commission of inquiry after certain events. All these bills were defeated [49].
- Action: On 24 December 2025 Ra'am MKs voted against the coalition's bill for a "state-national commission of inquiry" into October 7, whose members would be picked through the Knesset rather than by the Supreme Court president. The bill passed a first vote 53–48 [49].
Closest option(s): A state commission of inquiry whose members are picked by the President of the Supreme Court (state-commission-under-existing-law).
Religion and state
Ra'am is a religiously conservative Muslim party, and its record on the Jewish religion-and-state arrangements is mostly one of not taking part.
- Statement: In August 2026 Yahya Dahamsha, head of Ra'am's political department, said the party will not initiate or support legislation that conflicts with Islamic law [12]. MK Iman Khatib-Yassin said in July 2026: "Our national and religious principles guide us. They are the red line in every matter" [71].
- Action: Ra'am MKs did not vote on the civil marriage bill (24 December 2025), the bills to run public transport on Shabbat (19 November 2025), or the bills to define discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity (31 December 2025). All these bills were defeated [52].
- Action: No Ra'am MK is recorded as voting at the preliminary reading of Basic Law: Torah Study on 10 June 2026, which passed 56–43 [77]. The Times of Israel, citing Hebrew media reports, wrote that MKs of Ra'am and Hadash–Ta'al stayed away under an arrangement with the Haredi factions over a bill restricting mosque loudspeakers; Walla reported that those involved denied any such understanding [78, 79]. On 13 July 2026 the Ra'am MKs who voted (four of five) voted against the law at its final reading. It declares Torah study a foundational value and passed 63–52 [52].
- Action: On 18 December 2024 all five Ra'am MKs voted for a bill to repeal Basic Law: Israel – the Nation State of the Jewish People. The bill was defeated 13–49 [50].
- Action: On 14 January 2026 Ra'am MKs voted against bills to ban "conversion therapy" for minors [52].
Closest option(s): Tentative: keeping the status quo (keep-status-quo). By not voting on civil marriage and Shabbat transport and by voting against Basic Law: Torah Study, Ra'am has neither pushed to change nor sought to strengthen the current arrangements. The mapping is tentative because it is an inference from votes and absences, not from a stated position.
Other notable positions
Negev Bedouin and unrecognized villages
- Action: The 2021 coalition agreement required the government to recognize three Bedouin villages in the Negev (Abda, Khashm Zanna and Rakhma) within 45 days, and to prepare a broader plan for Bedouin settlement within nine months [33]. The government legalized the three villages, home to about 4,000 people, on 3 November 2021 [35].
- Action: In May 2022 Ra'am secured a commitment not to demolish or fine buildings of up to 70 square metres in unrecognized villages [37].
- Action: In opposition, Ra'am co-filed no-confidence motions over "the government's failure to deal with the unrecognized villages in the Negev" (3 June 2025) and over "the government's plan to expropriate the lands of Bedouin society in the Negev" (8 June 2026) [54].
Equality, the Nation-State Law and Arab representation
- Action: Ra'am voted for repealing Basic Law: Israel – the Nation State of the Jewish People (December 2024) [50].
- Action: Abbas was among the initiators of bills to make Arabic an official language, to add a right to equality to Basic Law: Human Dignity and Liberty, to ban racist election propaganda, to repeal the temporary provision of the Citizenship and Entry into Israel Law, and to ensure fair representation of Arab citizens in the civil service [70].
- Action: In May 2026 Ra'am and Hadash-Ta'al filed a no-confidence motion over the failure to include Arab citizens in decision-making roles in the public service and government companies [54].
Budgets for Arab local authorities and the five-year plan
- Action: Ra'am's 2021 coalition agreement produced the five-year development plan for Arab, Druze and Circassian communities, approved in October 2021 at about NIS 29.5 billion (Government Decision 550) [34, 33]. A 2026 review found that only 53% of the plan's budget had been allocated through 2024 [39].
- Action: Ra'am filed no-confidence motions over "severe cuts to the budgets of Arab society" (12 January 2026) and over budget cuts, lack of shelters and lack of personal security (2 December 2024) [54].
Public shelters in Arab communities
Al-Aqsa Mosque and Muslim holy sites
- Action: In April 2022, after clashes at the Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem, the Islamic Movement's Shura Council froze Ra'am's activity in the Knesset and the coalition. Abbas favoured a temporary freeze over leaving the coalition [38].
- Action: Abbas was among the initiators of a bill to create an authority to develop Muslim holy sites [70].
LGBT rights
- Action: Ra'am MKs voted against bills banning "conversion therapy" for minors in January 2026, and did not vote on bills defining discrimination on grounds of sexual orientation or gender identity in December 2025 [52].
- Statement: Candidate Yoav Segalovitz, who said in October 2026 that his daughter is a lesbian, called LGBT rights "among the differences I have with Ra'am" and said he would try to persuade the party, or otherwise "go my own way" [21, 23].
Death penalty for terrorists
- Action: All five Ra'am MKs voted against the Death Penalty for Terrorists Law, which passed 62–48 on 30 March 2026 [51].
Jewish-Arab partnership and Israel's Jewish character
- Formal commitment: In January 2026 Abbas announced that "every citizen of the State of Israel — Jewish and Arab — can join Ra'am" [9]. The party placed a Jewish candidate, Yoav Segalovitz, second on its 2026 list [1, 18]. Abbas said at the joint announcement on 31 August 2026: "To create change, you need to see the other person as a human being, not as an enemy" [18].
- Statement: In December 2021 Abbas said Israel "was born as a Jewish state" and that Arab citizens should focus on their status within it rather than on contesting its identity [69]. In September 2026 the Attorney General's office told the CEC that Abbas "recognizes Israel's Jewish character" [5]. In August 2026 Abbas said he accepted, as a matter of reality, that Israel is a Jewish state [12].
Women's rights and employment
- Action: Two private bills Abbas co-initiated became law: Equal Employment Opportunities Law (Amendment 27) in 2024, which extends the time limit for civil suits over workplace discrimination from three to five years, and Women's Employment Law (Amendment 67) in 2026 [70].
- Statement: Segalovitz has said that "Arab society is on a delay when it comes to sexual harassment, violence against women" [21].
UNRWA
- Action: Ra'am MKs voted against both laws passed on 28 October 2024 to end UNRWA's operations in Israel and Israel's ties with the agency [51].
Coalition stance
Pledges and statements for 2026
- On 7 December 2025, in a closed conversation, Abbas ruled out sitting in the next government with Benjamin Netanyahu, saying Netanyahu "has responsibility for the state of Arabs' security" [8].
- On 5 January 2026 Abbas ruled out cooperation with the current government, saying it "abandoned us in favor of extremist parties" [9].
- On 14 February 2026 Abbas did not rule out future talks with Likud but said he preferred a "change government" without Netanyahu [68]. In the same period he said: "I am against disqualifications in principle" [27].
- On 13 July 2026 MK Iman Khatib-Yassin said "there is no intention to join a coalition with the right" [71].
- On 2 August 2026 Abbas named Ra'am's goals as replacing the current government and joining the next coalition [10]. On 22 August 2026 he said Ra'am would join the opposition "change bloc" [15].
- Yoav Segalovitz said in September 2026: "If Ra'am reaches an agreement with Likud, I will not be there" [21].
How others have responded (factual context). In July 2026 Naftali Bennett said he would include only Zionist parties in a coalition [17]. On 26 September 2026 Gadi Eisenkot said Ra'am would not be part of a government he leads, because it does not recognize Hamas as a terror organization; Segalovitz replied that Eisenkot cannot form a government without Ra'am [67].
Track record of keeping coalition pledges
- 2019–2021: Abbas openly negotiated with Likud. In April 2021 Ra'am signalled willingness to support a Netanyahu government from outside, which was blocked by Religious Zionism's veto [72]. Abbas has since said he met Netanyahu four times at the Prime Minister's residence, and in May 2022 he showed Ynet messages from April 2021 in which he and Likud MK Yoav Kish exchanged a "memorandum of understandings" and "initial corrections," which he presented as the basis for a coalition agreement. Kish said the only draft was an agreement on supporting a law for direct election of the prime minister [27, 73].
- June 2021: Ra'am joined the Bennett-Lapid coalition, as it had said it would join any government that met its demands [32]. In April 2022 its activity in the coalition was frozen by the Shura Council over the events at Al-Aqsa, but Abbas kept the party from leaving the coalition [38]. In May 2022 he suggested bringing Haredi parties into the coalition to stabilize it [73].
- 2026 Arab unity pledge:
- Contradiction: On 22 January 2026 Ra'am signed the Sakhnin declaration committing to re-establish the four-party Joint List [26], and on 14 February 2026 Abbas said he had committed "to do everything so that this move succeeds" [27]. But Ra'am did not join the list and submitted its own list for the election [29, 1]. From February 2026 Abbas described any joint list as "completely technical," with each party keeping its own agenda, and said Ra'am would not join if the list fell in the polls [27]. In May 2026 Ra'am agreed only to a "technical" list that left it free to join a coalition [28]. On 10 June 2026, after disagreements in the talks, the other three parties said they would go ahead without Ra'am while leaving the door open [29], and on 2 August 2026 Abbas said the four-party option was "off the table" [10].
Track record
Ra'am was a member of the governing coalition from June 2021 to the end of the Bennett-Lapid government in 2022 [32, 7]. Its main coalition promises and their delivery:
| Promise (2021 coalition agreement) | Delivery |
|---|---|
| Recognize three Bedouin villages within 45 days [33] | Delivered on 3 November 2021, later than 45 days after the June 2021 swearing-in [35] |
| NIS 30 billion five-year plan for Arab communities [33] | Approved in October 2021 (about NIS 29.5 billion) [34]; only 53% allocated through 2024 [39] |
| NIS 2.5 billion crime-reduction plan [33] | NIS 2.4 billion approved in October 2021 [34]; carried out fully in 2022 only, when killings fell from 126 to 108 [39] |
| Freeze on enforcement against illegal building until 2024 [33]; amending the Kaminitz Law [32] | The January 2022 electricity law connected about 9,000 homes to the grid [36, 39]; a May 2022 deal halted demolitions of homes up to 70 m² in unrecognized villages [37]. Whether the Kaminitz Law itself was amended could not be verified. |
| Comprehensive plan for most unrecognized villages within nine months [33] | Not verified in the sources reviewed |
| A deputy minister post in the Prime Minister's Office, chairs of the Interior Committee and the Special Committee on Arab Society Affairs, and a Deputy Speaker post [33] | Walid Taha chaired the Interior and Environmental Protection Committee and Abbas served as Deputy Speaker [24]. Abbas sat on the Special Committee on Arab Society Affairs as a member [24]. |
Coalition-line votes (2021–2022). As coalition members, Ra'am's MKs voted with the coalition against several opposition private bills:
- a bill to increase the public-housing stock (defeated 40–44) and a bill to raise child allowances (defeated 38–43), both on 24 November 2021, with Abbas, Taha, Khatib-Yassin and Mazen Ghanaim voting against [80, 81];
- a bill to equalise the disability allowance with the minimum wage (1 December 2021, defeated 20–22), with Abbas, Taha and Khatib-Yassin voting against [82];
- a bill setting minimum sentences for weapons offences (11 May 2022, defeated 53–61), with Abbas, Taha and Khatib-Yassin voting against [83];
- a bill on public-transport discounts for people with disabilities (15 June 2022, defeated 47–52), with Abbas, Taha, Khatib-Yassin and Ghanaim voting against [84].
Whether these votes went against a pledge could not be checked: no Ra'am platform for the March 2021 election was found. The Israel Democracy Institute's archive holds none for that election, and a search found no other copy [90]. The votes are therefore recorded without a label. On 6 June 2022, when the bill extending the regulations that apply Israeli law to Israelis living in Judea and Samaria was defeated 52–58, Ghanaim voted against it and no other Ra'am MK is recorded as voting [85].
Change over time (Citizenship Law). On 5 July 2021 Abbas and Taha voted for the government's request to extend the Citizenship and Entry into Israel Law, which restricts residency for Palestinians from Judea and Samaria and Gaza who marry Israeli citizens, and Ra'am's two other MKs abstained; the motion ended in a 59–59 tie and the law expired [86]. The Times of Israel reported that Ra'am had agreed to back a six-month extension under a compromise that gave residency visas to some 1,600 Palestinian families [87]. On 10 March 2022 Ra'am's four MKs voted against the new version of the law at its final reading, where it passed 45–15 [88]. In the 25th Knesset Abbas was among the initiators of a bill to repeal the law's temporary provision [70].
In opposition (November 2022 to 2026): Ra'am voted against the government's state budgets [53], against the main judicial changes in their first readings [47], against the 2026 law freezing enforcement against yeshiva students [48], and for the opposition's state commission of inquiry bills [49]. It filed or co-filed dozens of no-confidence motions, most of them on crime, home demolitions, budget cuts and shelters in Arab society [54]. All five Ra'am MKs voted for the bill to dissolve the 25th Knesset in June 2026 [53].
Legal or ethical matters involving leaders
No indictments, convictions or official inquiries involving the party's leaders were found. One Knesset Ethics Committee decision, on absences from Knesset sittings, concerns Mansour Abbas and Yasser Hujirat and is listed below. The check covered Hebrew and English news coverage for police investigations, indictments, State Comptroller findings and court rulings involving Mansour Abbas, Yoav Segalovitz, Walid Taha, Walid Alhwashla and Iman Khatib-Yassin.
- Mansour Abbas, Knesset Ethics Committee (2026). On 12 May 2026 the Ethics Committee decided on Knesset members' absences from sittings in the winter and summer sittings of the 25th Knesset's third session (decision 51/25). It found that Abbas had been absent from 10 sittings beyond the quota the law allows. Abbas did not respond. The committee noted that it was not the first time he had exceeded the quota, that its earlier decision had imposed no sanction on him, and that he chairs a party, and imposed a remark (הערה) and the loss of three days' salary [91]. Status: decided; sanction imposed.
- Yasser Hujirat (No. 6), Knesset Ethics Committee (2026). In the same decision the committee found that Hujirat had been absent from four sittings beyond the quota in the summer sitting. Hujirat did not respond. The committee noted that it was the first time he had exceeded the quota and imposed a warning (אזהרה) [91]. Status: decided; sanction imposed.
- The party's disqualification case (2026). The CEC barred Ra'am on 23 September 2026 [5]. On 2 October 2026 the Supreme Court unanimously overturned the decision and found the material did not meet the legal standard for barring a list [2, 4]. The case concerned the list as a whole, not criminal proceedings against any leader.
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- הניסיון של הקואליציה לגייס את המפלגות הערביות בשביל חוק הגיוס. Mako (N12), 2025-11-29. https://www.mako.co.il/news-politics/2025_q4/Article-d5a27bf1ef0da91027.htm
- Israel election 2026: where every party stands on the judicial overhaul and Supreme Court. Ynetnews, 2026-09-22. https://www.ynetnews.com/article/hkcjtk1cme
- עבאס יתמוך ברפורמה המשפטית? "אין הסכם לצד האלימות". Maariv, 2023-05-06. https://www.maariv.co.il/news/politics/article-1004309
- Ra'am leader Abbas urges Arab community not to respond to incitement, calls for unity. The Times of Israel, 2023-10-07. https://www.timesofisrael.com/liveblog_entry/raam-leader-abbas-urges-arab-community-not-to-respond-to-incitement-calls-for-unity/
- Arab Israeli Lawmaker Abbas Denounces Hamas Attack, Says the Massacre Does Not 'Represent Our Arab Society'. Haaretz, 2023-11-07. https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/2023-11-07/ty-article/.premium/arab-list-mk-abbas-denounces-hamas-attack-says-massacre-doesnt-represent-arab-society/0000018b-aa11-d5aa-a19f-affb1b4b0000
- Ra'am's Abbas urges armed Palestinian factions to disarm, before softening statement. The Times of Israel, 2023-12-03. https://www.timesofisrael.com/raams-abbas-urges-armed-palestinian-factions-to-disarm-before-softening-statement/
- רע"ם: בלחימה בעזה נעשים פשעי מלחמה. Zman Yisrael, 2024-05-23. https://www.zman.co.il/live/489431/
- מנסור עבאס: "50 אלף אזרחים נרצחו ברצועת עזה". Kipa, 2024-07-17. https://www.kipa.co.il/%D7%97%D7%93%D7%A9%D7%95%D7%AA/%D7%A4%D7%95%D7%9C%D7%99%D7%98%D7%99/1185593-0/
- מנסור עבאס ורע"מ נגד התקיפה בעזה. Maariv, 2024-08-10. https://www.maariv.co.il/news/politics/article-1123829
- "לא בחקירה": עבאס סירב לתמוך בפירוק חמאס ופוצץ ראיון. Emess, 2025-11-10. https://www.emess.co.il/radio/1780372
- איזנקוט: רע"מ לא מכירים בחמאס כארגון טרור ולכן לא יהיו חלק מהממשלה. Davar, 2026-09-26. https://www.davar1.co.il/698758/
- Mansour Abbas says foreign-linked actors pressured him to ally with Netanyahu in 2021. The Times of Israel, 2026-02-14. https://www.timesofisrael.com/mansour-abbas-says-foreign-linked-actors-pressured-him-to-ally-with-netanyahu-in-2021/
- Arabs should move past contesting Israel's Jewish identity, Ra'am chief Abbas says. The Times of Israel, 2021-12-21. https://www.timesofisrael.com/arabs-should-move-past-contesting-israels-jewish-identity-raam-chief-abbas-says/
- KNS_Bill: bills initiated by Mansour Abbas in the 25th Knesset (Knesset open data). Knesset, accessed 2026-10-07. https://knesset.gov.il/OdataV4/ParliamentInfo/KNS_Bill?$filter=Id%20in%20(2197376,2206208,2199401,2198002,2199404,2198198,2197387,2197413,2197887,2197890,2197440,2197469,2198458,2196528,2197613)&$select=Id,Name,StatusID,PrivateNumber,KnessetNum
- ח"כ אימאן ח'טיב יאסין: רע"מ לא מתכוונת להצטרף לקואליציה עם הימין. Arutz Sheva (INN), 2026-07-13. https://www.inn.co.il/news/701375
- Netanyahu urges Sa'ar to come home as Smotrich says Ra'am veto unnegotiable. The Times of Israel, 2021-04-16. https://www.timesofisrael.com/netanyahu-urges-saar-to-come-home-as-smotrich-says-raam-veto-unnegotiable/
- מנסור עבאס: "לצרף מפלגות חרדיות, מוכן לתת להן מתקציבנו". Ynet, 2022-05-12. https://www.ynet.co.il/news/article/r1hz8e9iq
- Israel Election 2026: What do Yousef Jabareen's Joint Arab List and Mansour Abbas' Ra'am stand for? The Jerusalem Post, 2026-09-01. https://www.jpost.com/israel-election-2026/article-907154
- How has Israel's opposition responded to the Iran conflict? The New Arab, 2025-06-17. https://www.newarab.com/news/how-has-israels-opposition-responded-iran-conflict
- ועדת הבחירות המרכזית פרסמה את הפתקים של כל המפלגות לכנסת ה-26. Ynet, 2026-09-27. https://www.ynet.co.il/news/article/s1ibdii5fe
- Plenum vote 46121: Basic Law: Torah Study, preliminary reading (56 for, 43 against) (per-MK results). Knesset vote-details service (official record), 2026-06-10 (accessed 2026-10-12). https://www.knesset.gov.il/WebSiteApi/knessetapi/Votes/GetVoteDetails/46121
- Knesset advances Basic Law bill enshrining Torah study despite coalition revolt. The Times of Israel, 2026-06-10. https://www.timesofisrael.com/knesset-advances-basic-law-bill-enshrining-torah-study-despite-coalition-revolt/
- טענות לשיתוף פעולה בהצבעות בין משה גפני לאחמד טיבי. Walla, 2026-06-10. https://www.walla.co.il/news/politics/3844742
- Plenum vote 36094: Public Housing (Increasing the Stock) Bill, preliminary reading (40 for, 44 against) (per-MK results). Knesset vote-details service (official record), 2021-11-24 (accessed 2026-10-12). https://www.knesset.gov.il/WebSiteApi/knessetapi/Votes/GetVoteDetails/36094
- Plenum vote 36100: National Insurance (Raising Child Allowances) Bill, preliminary reading (38 for, 43 against) (per-MK results). Knesset vote-details service (official record), 2021-11-24 (accessed 2026-10-12). https://www.knesset.gov.il/WebSiteApi/knessetapi/Votes/GetVoteDetails/36100
- Plenum vote 36118: National Insurance (Equalising the Disability Allowance with the Minimum Wage) Bill, preliminary reading (20 for, 22 against) (per-MK results). Knesset vote-details service (official record), 2021-12-01 (accessed 2026-10-12). https://www.knesset.gov.il/WebSiteApi/knessetapi/Votes/GetVoteDetails/36118
- Plenum vote 37100: Penal Law (Minimum Sentences for Weapons Offences) Bill, preliminary reading (53 for, 61 against) (per-MK results). Knesset vote-details service (official record), 2022-05-11 (accessed 2026-10-12). https://www.knesset.gov.il/WebSiteApi/knessetapi/Votes/GetVoteDetails/37100
- Plenum vote 37316: Public Transport Discount for People with Disabilities Bill, preliminary reading (47 for, 52 against) (per-MK results). Knesset vote-details service (official record), 2022-06-15 (accessed 2026-10-12). https://www.knesset.gov.il/WebSiteApi/knessetapi/Votes/GetVoteDetails/37316
- Plenum vote 37279: bill to extend the emergency regulations (Judea and Samaria – jurisdiction and legal assistance) (52 for, 58 against) (per-MK results). Knesset vote-details service (official record), 2022-06-06 (accessed 2026-10-12). https://www.knesset.gov.il/WebSiteApi/knessetapi/Votes/GetVoteDetails/37279
- Plenum vote 35027: Citizenship and Entry into Israel (Temporary Order) extension order (59 for, 59 against, 2 abstentions) (per-MK results). Knesset vote-details service (official record), 2021-07-05 (accessed 2026-10-12). https://www.knesset.gov.il/WebSiteApi/knessetapi/Votes/GetVoteDetails/35027
- In blow to coalition, Knesset knocks down extension of family unification law. The Times of Israel, 2021-07-06. https://www.timesofisrael.com/in-blow-to-coalition-knesset-knocks-down-extension-of-family-unification-law/
- Plenum vote 37006: Citizenship and Entry into Israel Law (Temporary Order), 2022, third reading (45 for, 15 against) (per-MK results). Knesset vote-details service (official record), 2022-03-10 (accessed 2026-10-12). https://www.knesset.gov.il/WebSiteApi/knessetapi/Votes/GetVoteDetails/37006
- High Court strikes down law shielding haredi yeshiva students from arrest over draft evasion. The Jerusalem Post, 3 September 2026. https://jpost.com/israel-news/politics-and-diplomacy/article-907553
- רע"מ (party page: election results, candidate lists and platforms). Israel Democracy Institute, accessed 2026-10-12. https://www.idi.org.il/policy/parties-and-elections/parties/raam/
- החלטה מס' 51/25: החלטת ועדת האתיקה בענין היעדרויות חברי הכנסת מישיבות הכנסת בכנס החורף ובכנס הקיץ של המושב השלישי של הכנסת ה-25. Knesset Ethics Committee, 12 May 2026. https://main.knesset.gov.il/Activity/committees/Ethics/Decisions25/Decisions25-51.pdf
Information availability
Enough public information exists to describe Ra'am's positions. The party has a long Knesset record (votes, bills and no-confidence motions), a coalition record from 2021–2022, and extensive news coverage in Hebrew and English, including detailed interviews with Mansour Abbas and Yoav Segalovitz in 2025–2026.
There are some gaps. No published 2026 party platform (מצע) could be found in Hebrew, English or Arabic; Ra'am's own website could not be reached. Many positions therefore rest on Knesset votes, the 2021 coalition agreement and statements, not on a formal platform. No documented position on Iran and Hezbollah was found. Ra'am declined to state current positions on Haredi enlistment and the judicial system in September 2026. Its position on the borders of a Palestinian state is not specified. The outcome of some 2021 coalition commitments, such as the Kaminitz Law amendment and the broader plan for unrecognized villages, could not be verified.