Palestinian Parliamentary Election: Abbas Sets Election Date for the 28th

Point of Contention: East Jerusalem

It remains unclear so far whether the election can take place in East Jerusalem. Israel has considered East Jerusalem part of its indivisible capital since the annexation in 1967 and prohibits official political activity by the Palestinian Authority (PA) in the city area. This formally excludes one of the central electoral districts of the Palestinians from the vote.

The situation in the Gaza Strip also raises questions. The Gaza Strip was the most frequently mentioned area in the statistics of the report, with eight mentions. Since the start of the war following the Hamas attack of October 7, 2023, a regular election there is barely conceivable organizationally and in terms of security policy, although this is not elaborated further in the available facts.

Open Questions and Next Steps

International observers have not publicly responded to the announcement so far. The PA has depended for decades on financial and diplomatic support from Western states as well as from Arab neighbors. A resumption of elections has long been demanded in Western capitals.

The decree by Abbas is not legally secured without a functioning parliament. Observers point out that Fatah has lost support in recent years and that Hamas continues to act as a political and military actor in parts of the West Bank.

According to Wafa, the next steps are an update of the voter registers and the invitation of election observers. It remains open whether these steps can actually be implemented by the announced date.

Should the election actually take place, it would be the first nationwide vote of the Palestinians since the change of power to Hamas 20 years ago. Even beforehand, several Fatah-affiliated groups had demanded reforms of electoral law and of the status of East Jerusalem.