A guide to the Israeli election

Nation votes in a special prime minister election for the first time

(CNN) -- The February 6 Israeli election for prime minister is the first time a special prime ministerial election will be held since the 1996 change in Israeli law that mandated the direct election of the prime minister by voters.

The election was set into motion by the resignation of Prime Minister Ehud Barak, who said he wanted to renew his mandate to pursue peace with the Palestinians. Barak was elected 18 months ago on a platform of peace, but his negotiations with the Palestinians have come under fierce criticism by right-wing opponents.

Initially, Israeli law required that candidates in special elections be a member of the Knesset, the Israeli parliament.

But the Knesset changed the law to allow non-Knesset members to become candidates due to the strong support that former Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was receiving to mount a campaign himself. But Netanyahu, a member of the Likud Party, declined to run without a general election for all parliament seats.

Barak won his Labor Party's nomination for prime minister December 11. The Likud Party nominated its chairman, Ariel Sharon, who took over the hard-line party after Netanyahu stepped down following the 1999 election. Candidates for prime minister must be a citizen at least 30 years of age and may be nominated by a party, or parties, with at least 10 seats in the Knesset.

A candidate must receive more than half of the valid votes to win the election. If no candidate receives more than 50 percent of the vote, a runoff is held between the two top candidates, with the winner being the candidate who receives the largest number of valid votes.

Once elected, if a prime minister fails to present a government within 45 days of the official election results, another special election is held.

Elections are heavily regulated

Israeli election laws heavily regulate candidate advertising and campaigning. Campaign advertising is barred from appearing on buses and lighted billboards, and there are limits on the size of advertising in printed media. The law also bars the use of entertainment events or gifts to promote a candidacy.

Each candidate is given 120 minutes of radio and television time to make their case, and special campaign advertisements are broadcast during the 21 days before the day of the election.

Campaigns are also banned from using persons who were killed or injured in security-related activities without first getting the permission of the person or the surviving family. The law also places limits on the use of children under the age of 15 in campaigns.

Israeli elections receive public financing as well. The Knesset allocated 40.5 million new shekels ($9.78 million) in state campaign financing for each prime ministerial candidate. Individuals also may contribute to political campaigns.

Candidates who receive less than 8 percent of the vote are required to pay back all public campaign funds, while those receiving up to 15 percent will have to pay back half.

Election day is a holiday in Israel, and all citizens aged 18 or older on election day are eligible to vote. On February 6, 4.5 million Israelis will be eligible to vote, an increase of about 5 percent over those eligible in the 1999 elections.

There are no absentee ballots in Israeli elections, and voting takes place only on Israeli soil with the exception of official Israeli envoys serving in overseas missions and members of the Israeli merchant marine. Voting at the 99 Israeli diplomatic missions worldwide took place January 25.