Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas postpones elections to September 2027
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas issued a decree on Saturday cancelling the legislative elections scheduled for November this year and setting a new date, together with the presidential vote, for September 2027. The last election for the Palestinian Legislative Council was held in 2006 and won by Hamas , leading to the rift between the group and the ruling Fatah party. Fatah leader and…
In a surprising move, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas has decided to postpone both the legislative elections and the presidential vote from November 2022 to September 2027. This decision comes after the last election for the Palestinian Legislative Council in 2006, which Hamas won, leading to a rift between Hamas and the ruling Fatah party. Abbas, who has been in power since 2005, has been ruling by decree for the past 17 years, exceeding his term limit.
Sources close to the main Palestinian factions confirm that the legislative elections, which were highly anticipated, have been postponed according to the Palestinian news agency Wafa. The presidential vote, originally scheduled for the following year, will also be moved to September 2027. The decree announcing this change was issued by Abbas on Saturday.
The Palestinian Executive Committee of the Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO) approved the postponement, citing security concerns in both the Gaza Strip and the occupied West Bank as the primary reason. The delay is also attributed to the need for a national dialogue in Egypt and the overarching goal of ending "Palestinian division" before holding the polls.
However, efforts to unite the factions within the Palestinian political scene have often been unsuccessful due to deep-seated disagreements on the way forward for Palestine. This has been exacerbated by systemic and endemic problems that have plagued Palestine for decades, rendering the state institutions, finances, and political scene incapable of supporting proper elections.
Under the increasingly hostile and deadly occupation, the lack of a suitable environment for elections has been a persistent issue. Recent high-level meetings and tactical alliances between factions seeking to unseat Abbas and his ruling Fatah party have raised concerns among his dwindling support base. Recent opinion polls show that 79% of Palestinians want Abbas to resign, indicating a significant loss of public support.
Written by urgent.news from The National UAE's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
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