Abbas Loyalists Secure Majority in Palestinian Municipal Elections Including Gaza

Palestinian election officials announced that loyalists of President Mahmoud Abbas won most races in municipal elections held on Saturday. The elections included a city in Gaza for the first time in nearly two decades. Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammed Mustafa stated that the elections occurred at a highly sensitive moment amid complex challenges and exceptional circumstances.

The ballot in central Gaza's Deir el-Balah was described by Palestinian Authority officials as a largely symbolic pilot election to demonstrate that Gaza is an inseparable part of a future Palestinian state. Saturday's vote was the first election of any kind in Gaza since 2006 and the first Palestinian polls since Israel's war in the territory began in October 2023.

Hamas, which has governed Gaza since 2007, did not formally nominate candidates in Gaza and boycotted the race in the occupied West Bank.

results from Deir el-Balah showed the list known as Deir el-Balah Brings Us Together won two of the 15 seats contested. The Nahdat Deir el-Balah list, backed by Abbas's Fatah party and the Palestinian Authority, secured six seats. The remaining seats went to two other Gaza-based groups, Future of Deir el-Balah and Peace and Building, not affiliated with either major faction.

Some candidates on the Deir el-Balah Brings Us Together list were seen by residents and analysts as aligned with Hamas, potentially indicating support for the group. In the West Bank, Abbas loyalists swept the election, running unchallenged in many seats.

Fatah spokesperson Abdul Fattah Dawla noted that turnout was close to that of the last municipal elections in the West Bank in 2022 and praised voters for participating despite ongoing violence by Israel.

turnout in Gaza was 23 percent, while in the occupied West Bank it was 56 percent, according to Chairman of the Central Elections Commission Rami Hamdallah. Some ballot boxes and voting equipment did not enter the enclave due to Israeli restrictions.

Al Jazeera’s Hind Khoudary, reporting from Gaza City, stated that Israeli forces are imposing restrictions on items entering the Gaza Strip. Khoudary added that Gaza had low voter turnout because of an outdated population registry, displacement of survivors, and people being busy with survival.

Israel's war has reduced much of Gaza to rubble, with the Israeli military conducting strikes despite a ceasefire taking effect in October. One resident, Ashraf Abu Dan, told the Associated Press that he voted because it was his right to elect municipal council members to provide services.

The elections followed Israel's war against Palestinians in Gaza, which began in October 2023. The vote in Deir el-Balah aimed to affirm Gaza's role in Palestinian statehood. No further elections are scheduled, but officials indicated the pilot could inform future polling efforts.