Balad Chairman Sami Abu Shehadeh addressed the allegations of suspected involvement by a hostile state in the elections, saying, "In any normal place, whoever loses the elections takes responsibility and goes home. In Israel, the losing side constructs a racist blood libel and calls on security agencies to use force to overturn the election results. Someone accused of bribery, fraud and breach of trust does not stop inciting against 20% of the state's citizens."

