[EARLIER UPDATES IN EXTENDED STORY] 9:00PM IL: *A 15-year-old boy was apprehended with a forged identification card as he tried to vote in Bet Shemesh.

*Interior Minister Meir Sheetrit lamented the low voter turnout nationwide, calling it a “distortion of democracy”.

*20:30: Jerusalem voter turnout reported at 35%. Total voter turnout in the last municipal election in the capital was 38%.

*Sderot: 55% voter turnout at 20:45.

*Netivot reporting over 70% voter turnout at 20:45.

*The Arab municipality of Rahat reporting over 90% voter turnout.

*The Porush campaign has Jerusalem divided into 41 sectors, seeking to reach each target audience.

*Barkat campaign officials report phone threats from Porush supporters.

*There are 5 candidates in the Tel Aviv mayoral race. Candidates fear there may be a second round run-off race since voter turnout is quite low, below 30%.  A candidate must receive at least 40% of the vote.

Next report to follow the closing of polling stations around the country at 22:00

8:00PM IL: *Israel Police report 125 violent and/or irregular election-related incidents nationwide. Sixteen people were detained for questioning.

*In small municipalities, elections polls closed at 8:00pm. In the major cities and municipalities, the polls remain open until 10:00pm.

*The Beersheva voter turnout at 6:00pm was reported at 13.7%.

*Four Jerusalem residents were arrested on Ezras Torah Street for posing as poll watchers. Police report they were carrying forged poll-watcher identification cards.

*Interior Minister Meir Sheetrit reported at 7:00pm that the nationwide voter turnout is 28.5%.

*Mrs. Achlama Peretz, a candidate in the Sderot mayoral race, filed a complaint with police alleging voters were paid to vote for candidate David Buskila.

*Jassr el-Zarka: Police moved in and placed Yassam tactical force in the Arab municipality following earlier election-related violence. The municipality, located near Zichron Yaakov, is reporting long delays at voting stations due to the police presence.

*Gaydamak supporters disappointed as Arab voter turnout in Yerushalayim race remains predictably low.

*Porush supporters reported to police that Barkat supporters placed a suspicious object in a pro-Porush voting station to halt voters from casting their ballot.

*6:00pm: 22% voter turnout in Tel Aviv. 29% voted in the city’s last municipal election.

4:00PM IL: As of 4:00pm, the percentage of registered voters in the three major cities was still low, with Haifa at 18%, Tel Aviv 19% and Jerusalem 21%. These numbers are expected to increase significantly during the evening and nighttime hours, after voters leave the workplace.

In other Jerusalem election news, candidate Arkadi Gaydamak spent NIS 600,000 to get Arab voters out to the polls but as of 4:00pm, only 300 actually voted in eastern capital polling stations.

After five years in the opposition during the tenure of Mayor Uri Lupoliansky, Nir Barkat remains confident that he will emerge the victor in the Jerusalem race. Barkat focused on reaching out to the dati leumi voters today, Election Day.

For chareidi candidate Meir Porush the day was a busy one, visiting polling stations and neighborhoods. Porush officials remain confident that City Hall will remain in chareidi hands.

Security forces remain on heightened alert status to do their utmost to ensure the day passes without incident.

3:00PM IL: As of 3:00pm on Tuesday, Municipal Election Day, 16.3% of eligible voters have exercised their right to select the next mayor or municipal head of their city or town council.

At the Lapidot polling station in the Beis Yisrael neighborhood in the capital, police moved in to restore order after rocks began to fly in an effort to prevent people from taking part in the election. One policeman was lightly injured and transported to Shaare Zedek Medical Center.

In other election dispute news, campaign officials of Nir Barkat accuse the Porush camp of hacking into their candidate’s website and leaving reprehensible anti-Barkat slogans.

In response, Porush officials’ report they have learned that Barkat supporters are working to prevent the chareidi candidate from winning the election and towards that goal, they have forged ballot slips with the name Menachem Porush, Meir’s father, and placed them in voting stations knowing they will not count towards a vote for Porush.

(Yechiel Spira – YWN Israel)