Palestine to hold first national elections after 14 years

 The parliamentary elections will be conducted on May 22nd, presidential elections on July 31st and Palestinian National Council elections on August 31st.

Palestine is set to hold its first national elections in 2021 after a span of 14 long years. As per a decree signed by Palestine President Mahmoud Abbas on January 15, 2021, three elections  – parliamentary, presidential and National Council polls –will be conducted in the nation this year. 

Key Highlights 

• The Palestinian President has instructed the election committee and all state apparatuses to launch a democratic election process in all the cities.

• Under the President's decree, the parliamentary elections will be conducted on May 22nd, presidential elections on July 31st and Palestinian National Council elections on August 31st.

• Mahmoud Abbas signed the decree while meeting Nasser, chairman of the Central Elections Commission (CEC) Hanna Nasser at the presidential headquarters in Ramallah in the West Bank.

• Two Palestinian groups -Hamas and Fatah have been against each other ever since Hamas seized the Gaza Strip from its rival in 2007. However, in September 2020, the two groups met in Turkey and agreed to hold parliamentary and presidential elections.

• Finally, on December 31, 2020, senior Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh sent President Abbas an official letter on ending internal Palestinian division and holding general elections in the Palestinian territories.

Background

The first-ever legislative and presidential elections of Palestine were held in 1996. Though the elections were scheduled to be held in 2009, they had to be postponed due to the Fatah–Hamas conflict. 

President Mahmoud Abbas agreed to stay on as President of Palestine until the next election, but he is recognized as president only in the West Bank and not by Hamas controlled Gaza strip. 

The Palestinian National Authority has a multi-party system with Fatah being the dominant party.