Aryeh Deri cannot run for mayor of Jerusalem, a court ruled.
The Jerusalem District Court on Thursday rejected the request by the former chairman of the fervently religious Shas Party to declare him eligible.
A 1999 conviction for crimes involving moral turpitude and a prison sentence prohibits Deri from holding public office until mid-2009 without court intervention or a presidential pardon.
The “cooling-off period” of seven years was not put into place until after Deri’s prison term of 22 months began.
Deri is not expected to appeal to the High Court.