In full comptrol: Why Netanyahu fought so hard over the state comptroller election

The recent, highly controversial election of Michael Rabello, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s longtime lawyer and adviser, as state comptroller has done nothing if not raise the profile of that largely unknown, uninspiring office.

Members of the opposition denounced the irregularities of the election and what they said was Rabello’s conflict of interest due to his association with Netanyahu and the Likud, while watchdog groups filed petitions against the appointment to the High Court of Justice.

Rabello is now scheduled to take up his position on July 1, although the petitions filed to the High Court may yet delay that date.

But what exactly does the state comptroller do, what authority does the position have, and, crucially, what impact and influence does it have and can it exert over Israeli ministries, agencies, and institutions over which it has oversight?

Moreover, why was Netanyahu so committed to getting Rabello elected?

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Not-so-secret ballot

The election in the Knesset of Rabello earlier this month was beset by controversy, after multiple Likud MKs videoed or photographed themselves voting for Rabello after senior Likud officials reportedly instructed them to do so, despite Basic Law: The State Comptroller stating explicitly that the vote by Knesset MKs must be conducted by secret ballot.

Rabello lost the first round of voting to retired Supreme Court judge Yosef Elron 60-57, but won a do-over second round 61-57 after senior Likud officials, including at least one MK close to Netanyahu, reportedly instructed Likud MKs to vote for Rabello and record themselves doing so.

Petitions filed to the High Court — including by Elron himself, who was an avowed proponent of judicial restraint during his time on the court — argued that MKs who publicly videoed and photographed their vote violated the requirement of a secret ballot, and therefore undermined the freedom of other MKs to vote their conscience and, by extension, the political independence of Rabello as comptroller.

Knesset Legal Adviser Sagit Afik, in her response, asked the court to dismiss the petitions, however, saying the petitioners presented no direct evidence that Likud MKs had been ordered to document their vote and arguing that the law does not bar an MK from voluntarily documenting their own vote. Afik noted in addition that she had recommended barring telephones from the ballot box in the second round, but that the opposition had agreed with the coalition not to do so.

A hearing in the High Court is scheduled for Thursday.

כמו כן ״דלף״ תיעוד של חנוך מילבצקי מתעד את עצמו מצביע לראבילו pic.twitter.com/xkQQ8YlcS0

— מיכאל שמש Michael Shemesh (@shemeshmicha) June 3, 2026

Who is Michael Rabello?

Rabello is an attorney of 30 years who has spent much of his time working in the field of civil and commercial law.

At the same time, he has served as legal adviser to the Likud party, has represented the Likud party in numerous coalition negotiations when establishing governments after elections, and has also represented Netanyahu and his wife Sara in various court cases.

He has also frequently represented the current government, and previous Likud-led governments, in proceedings in the High Court.

Rabello represented the government in petitions against the appointment of Shas leader Aryeh Deri as a minister in 2023, and more recently has represented the government in opposing petitions demanding that a state commission of inquiry be established into the October 7, 2023, Hamas invasion and massacres.

Rabello also represented Netanyahu personally over High Court petitions in 2020 demanding that he not be allowed to serve as prime minister while under indictment and on trial, and in a libel suit against then-Channel 10 reporter Ravid Drucker.

Rabello has also represented Netanyahu personally in High Court petitions against the NIS 2 million ($685,000) loan he received from real estate mogul Spencer Partrich to pay his legal fees.

The authorities of the state comptroller

The authority of the state comptroller is anchored in law through Basic Law: The State Comptroller from 1988 and the State Comptroller Law of 1958.

The state comptroller is appointed for one term only by the Knesset, and requires a majority of 61 MKs to be elected. And the comptroller can only be dismissed by the Knesset, in a vote requiring two-thirds of Knesset members, 80 MKs in total, to vote for dismissal.
These arrangements were designed to increase the state comptroller’s independence from the government, which the office audits, something which is made explicit in Basic Law: The State Comptroller

Under the terms of the basic law, the state comptroller has a very large mandate to conduct “audits” of practically every government ministry, state agency, public corporation, municipal authority, and review, not only whether the actions of such bodies were legal, but if they were appropriate, effective, or proper.
The state comptroller also audits the accounts of political parties that run in Knesset elections, the accounts of candidates in party primaries, and the accounts of parties represented in the Knesset.

Outgoing State Comptroller Matanyahu Englman has issued myriad reports in his six years in office, from government readiness for cyberattacks through to corruption in local municipal authorities to the loss of state control in the Negev region. He has also controversially investigated the failures leading to the October 7, 2023, Hamas invasion and atrocities, although petitions are pending before the High Court demanding his reports on core issues relating to the catastrophe be scrapped.

If the comptroller finds that a party or political candidate has violated campaign finance laws, then they can impose fines and require that illegally received funds be returned. The state comptroller can also demand documentation and information from all state bodies under their review who are required to acquiesce to such demands under the terms of the basic law.

Other than over party and election financing, the State Comptroller’s Office has no enforcement authority over the government ministries and agencies they audit.

Speaking on the “Quiet Revolution” podcast earlier this week, legal scholar and former legal adviser to the state comptroller Prof. Yoram Rabin asserted, however, that the office nevertheless has an effective form of soft power.

He argued that state comptroller reports on the manifold issues the office audits provide voters with uniquely impartial, politically neutral accounts of government functioning, which can help inform their electoral choice.

Why did Netanyahu campaign so hard for Rabello?

At first glance, it would seem obvious why Netanyahu campaigned so hard for his long-time lawyer and adviser.

Since the state comptroller has authority to review and issue fines over political contributions and party financing, having that office-holder on one’s side could be especially convenient.

Rabello, his detractors might say, could be inclined to approve problematic contributions, giving the Likud, his former employer, an unfair advantage.

Similarly, the state comptroller will have to review how and in what manner Netanyahu can repay the loan to Partich. It would be helpful to Netanyahu if his personal lawyer, in his capacity as state comptroller, would decide that he can repay the loan over an extended period of time and with undemanding repayment conditions.

But such a scenario appears unlikely, since Rabello will have to sign a comprehensive conflict of interest agreement, as all senior state officials must, documents that are designed to ensure that an office holder’s work from their private career does not impact their impartiality in their work as public servants.

Prof. Ori Aronson of Bar Ilan University’s Faculty of Law said that Rabello’s conflict of interest agreement, which will be drawn up by the legal adviser of the State Comptroller’s Office, will almost certainly bar him from dealing with the Likud’s party finances since he used to work for the Likud, and likely bar him from dealing with Partich’s loan to Netanyahu since he represented the prime minister in court on that very issue.

So what’s the problem?

During his interview on the “Quiet Revolution” podcast, Rabin said that the power of the state comptroller was not necessarily in what issues they choose to review, but in what they decide not to review.

“The great power of the state comptroller is to decide the work agenda [of the office], and what are the emphases, and what he wants to review,” said Rabin.

He noted that previous state comptrollers, such as Micha Lindenstrauss and Yosef Shapira, investigated expenses claimed by the Prime Minister’s Office, which resulted in significant backlash against Netanyahu when details of improper expenses were revealed.

“His power is to decide what is being audited. No one else can decide the work agenda other than him,” said Rabin.

“You can’t deal with this through a conflict of interest agreement, because no one else is authorized to determine the agenda.”

And Prof. Yaniv Roznai, an expert in constitutional law and a fierce critic of the current government, added a final problematic facet to the appointment of an individual who, in his private career, has worked closely with the serving prime minister and his party for many years.

“You’re taking an institution that is supposed to serve as a supervisor of the government and turning it into something that will not be a real check on your power if you are in government,” said Roznai.

He expressed concern that Rabello’s longtime political association with Netanyahu and the Likud could lead him to adopt a partial and partisan attitude to their political opponents, which a conflict of interest agreement would likely not bar him from dealing with.

“If the state comptroller deals with political party financing, then he will have to supervise the spending not just of Likud, but also of the Democrats, of Bennett, of Eisenkot, and of civil society organizations as well,” said Roznai.

“Imagine you have someone loyal to you [in the State Comptroller’s Office] who can make life difficult for your political opponents.”