"This is a sad day for democracy and a sad day for our judicial system," the justice minister said in a statement.
The Judicial Selection Committee convenes to appoint Israel's new chief justice.
The bill proposal, by Likud MK Osher Shkalim, is one of a number of proposals targeting Kan, which are being promoted by Communications Minister Shlomo Karhi.
Earlier on Friday, Attorney-General Gali Baharav-Miara penned a letter to Levin, calling on him to convene the committee.
The ultra-Orthodox IDF draft has come to a head as the Israel-Hamas war has seen reservists completing hundreds of days of duty. IDF says it needs more manpower to deal with the new security reality.
The final tally was 53-45 against the proposal. However, the coalition has attempted to come up with an alternative committee.
Israel has been without a chief justice since October 2023, when former chief justice Esther Hayut’s tenure ended.
Sa'ar and Levin pitched the proposal as "evolutionary and not revolutionary," but according to Mandelblit, the proposal was indeed revolutionary.
He remarked on Communications Minister Shlomo Karhi's recent comments stating he would not follow the High Court's orders with regard to Israel's public broadcaster KAN.
The MGQ demanded that a criminal investigation be opened into Defense Minister Israel Katz on suspicion of obstruction of justice and breach of trust.
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