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Palestinians Vote in First Municipal Elections in Gaza in Two Decades
Palestinians in Gaza's Deir el-Balah and the occupied West Bank cast ballots in the first municipal elections since 2006, with Fatah-backed lists winning most seats. The vote, seen as symbolic for Gaza's future statehood, saw low turnout in Gaza amid ongoing challenges.
By Tertius News AI Desk3 outlets · 3 distinct · 6 articlesVersion 1Coverage Published
Lead
Palestinians in Gaza's Deir el-Balah and the occupied West Bank went to the polls on Saturday for municipal elections, marking the first Palestinian vote in Gaza in nearly two decades. The elections, held amid the devastation of the Israel-Gaza war and a fragile ceasefire, resulted in victories for candidates loyal to President Mahmoud Abbas, according to election officials and multiple news outlets.
Coverage Comparison
Reporting from Al Jazeera, Dawn, and France 24 highlighted the symbolic nature of the Gaza vote, which was confined to Deir el-Balah due to widespread destruction elsewhere. The Western-backed Palestinian Authority framed the election as a pilot to reinforce Gaza's place in a future Palestinian state, a point echoed across sources. Dawn's coverage emphasized Fatah's dominance and Hamas's boycott, while France 24 noted the electoral reforms that sidelined Hamas. Discrepancies emerged regarding the number of eligible voters: Al Jazeera reported 70,000 in Deir el-Balah, while France 24 mentioned nearly 1.5 million registered voters in the West Bank. Turnout figures were consistent: 23% in Gaza and 56% in the West Bank, according to Central Elections Commission chair Rami Hamdallah.
Key Claims
Fatah-backed lists won most seats: Preliminary results showed the Nahdat Deir el-Balah list, backed by Abbas's Fatah party, secured six of 15 contested seats in Gaza, as reported by Al Jazeera and Dawn.
Hamas-linked candidates fared poorly: A list widely seen as aligned with Hamas, Deir el-Balah Brings Us Together, won only two seats, according to preliminary results cited by Al Jazeera.
Hamas boycotted the elections: The group did not formally nominate candidates in Gaza and boycotted the West Bank vote, according to multiple sources.
Electoral reforms sidelined Hamas: A December 2024 decree by Abbas required candidates to accept the Palestine Liberation Organization's programme, which calls for recognition of Israel and renouncing armed struggle, effectively excluding Hamas, as reported by France 24.
Logistical challenges in Gaza: Ballot boxes and voting equipment were denied entry by Israeli authorities, forcing local officials to manufacture boxes and use ink from WHO vaccination campaigns, according to a single Al Jazeera report. Some sources noted that Israeli restrictions hampered the delivery of materials.
Elections seen as a step toward statehood: Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammed Mustafa called the vote "another step on the path to full independence," a quote carried by Al Jazeera and Dawn.
Perspectives
Palestinian Authority and Fatah: Officials described the elections as successful and symbolic, emphasizing that including Gaza in the vote demonstrated the territory's integral role in a future Palestinian state. They framed it as a step toward broader democratic renewal, despite acknowledging the exceptional circumstances.
Hamas and supporters: While Hamas did not formally participate, the presence of aligned candidates offered a barometer of support. The poor showing of the Brings Us Together list was noted, though polling from the Palestinian Center for Policy and Survey Research suggests Hamas remains popular, a claim reported by a single source.
Residents and voters: Personal accounts from Deir el-Balah, such as those of Salama Badwan and his daughter Dunia Salama, conveyed enthusiasm for the democratic process, with first-time voters expressing hope for change. However, some West Bank residents expressed skepticism about the elections' impact, as per Al Jazeera.
International and regional observers: France 24 and Dawn noted the PLO programme requirement as a mechanism to sideline opposition, reflecting broader international pressure for electoral reforms. The United States-drafted ceasefire plan does not include the Palestinian Authority, as per one source.
Temporal Context and Corrections
The December 2024 decree by Abbas, which required candidates to accept the PLO programme, was a significant precursor to these elections. Also, the bombing of the Deir el-Balah municipality building in December 2024, which killed the mayor and 10 staff, despite the area being designated a safe zone, was reported by a single source and has not been independently verified. The elections occurred amid an ongoing ceasefire, though sporadic Israeli strikes have continued, as noted in several reports.
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Each row is one claim, attributed to the outlet whose wording states it most clearly. Confidence rates how directly the source text states the claim — explicit and unhedged rates high; hedged, pieced-together, or internally inconsistent statements rate lower. It does not measure whether the claim is true. Status counts the distinct outlets we found asserting it — so a single-source claim can still show high confidence, and a multi-source claim can show medium. Every one of those outlets is named beside the status, so you can check the count against the list. For claims extracted before we began storing that list, the row says so: it names the outlet the claim is quoted from and states that we have not recorded which outlets backed it. Outlets wrote at different times, so a figure that evolves — a casualty count, for example — can legitimately differ between rows; check the "as of" time next to each claim's source.
Claim
Confidence
Status
ClaimLoyalists of President Mahmoud Abbas won most races in Palestinian municipal elections, election officials said.
ConfidenceHigh
StatusMulti-source quoted from Al Jazeerathe outlets behind this status were not recorded for this claim
ClaimThe municipal elections in Gaza and the West Bank were the first Palestinian elections of any kind in Gaza since 2006, and the first Palestinian polls since the start of the Israel-Gaza war in October 2023.
ConfidenceHigh
StatusMulti-source quoted from Al Jazeerathe outlets behind this status were not recorded for this claim
ClaimThe vote in Deir el-Balah was a largely symbolic 'pilot' election intended to show that Gaza was an inseparable part of a future Palestinian state, according to Palestinian Authority officials.
ConfidenceMedium
StatusMulti-source quoted from Al Jazeerathe outlets behind this status were not recorded for this claim
ClaimHamas did not formally nominate candidates in Gaza and boycotted the municipal elections in the occupied West Bank.
ConfidenceHigh
StatusMulti-source quoted from Al Jazeerathe outlets behind this status were not recorded for this claim
ClaimThe preliminary results showed that the Deir el-Balah Brings Us Together list, whose candidates were widely seen as aligned with Hamas, won only two of the 15 seats contested in Gaza.
ConfidenceMedium
StatusMulti-source quoted from Al Jazeerathe outlets behind this status were not recorded for this claim
ClaimThe Nahdat Deir el-Balah list, backed by Abbas's Fatah party and the Palestinian Authority, secured six seats in the Gaza municipal elections.
ConfidenceMedium
StatusMulti-source quoted from Al Jazeerathe outlets behind this status were not recorded for this claim
ClaimThe remaining seats in the Gaza election were won by two other Gaza-based groups, Future of Deir el-Balah and Peace and Building, not affiliated with either major faction.
ConfidenceMedium
StatusMulti-source quoted from Al Jazeerathe outlets behind this status were not recorded for this claim
ClaimVoter 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.
ConfidenceHigh
StatusMulti-source quoted from Al Jazeerathe outlets behind this status were not recorded for this claim
ClaimSome ballot boxes and voting equipment did not make it into Gaza because of Israeli restrictions.
ConfidenceHigh
StatusMulti-source quoted from Al Jazeerathe outlets behind this status were not recorded for this claim
ClaimThe municipal elections were held 'at a highly sensitive moment amid complex challenges and exceptional circumstances', according to Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammed Mustafa.
ConfidenceHigh
StatusMulti-source quoted from Al Jazeerathe outlets behind this status were not recorded for this claim
ClaimPolling stations in Gaza and the West Bank opened at 7am local time (04:00 GMT) on Saturday for the municipal elections.
ClaimHamas won parliamentary elections in 2006 and seized control of Gaza from the Fatah-led Palestinian Authority in 2007.
ConfidenceHigh
StatusMulti-source quoted from Al Jazeerathe outlets behind this status were not recorded for this claim
ClaimA December 2024 decree by President Mahmoud Abbas required candidates to accept the programme of the Palestine Liberation Organization, which calls for recognition of Israel and renouncing armed struggle, effectively sidelining Hamas and other factions.
ConfidenceHigh
StatusMulti-source quoted from Al Jazeerathe outlets behind this status were not recorded for this claim
ClaimPresident Mahmoud Abbas, aged 90, signed a decree last year to overhaul the electoral system, allowing voting for individuals rather than party lists, lowering the eligibility age to run, and raising quotas for female candidates.
ClaimThe Central Elections Commission has not coordinated directly with either Israel or Hamas ahead of the Deir el-Balah vote, according to its spokesperson Fareed Taamallah.
ClaimPolling from the Palestinian Center for Policy and Survey Research indicates that Hamas remains the most popular Palestinian faction in both Gaza and the occupied West Bank.
ClaimDeir el-Balah is the only municipality in Gaza participating in the April 25 election, which is part of a broader process including 420 local councils in the occupied West Bank, according to CEC regional director Jamil al-Khalidi.
ClaimThe election in Deir el-Balah is being held under a closed-list system, with voters choosing one of four lists and then casting preference votes for five specific candidates within that list, according to CEC regional director Jamil al-Khalidi.
ClaimThe election in Deir el-Balah features four nominally independent lists: Peace and Construction, Deir el-Balah Brings Us Together, Future of Deir el-Balah, and Renaissance of Deir el-Balah.
ClaimVoting in Deir el-Balah took place from 7am to 5pm local time (04:00-14:00 GMT) at 12 electoral centres, each equipped with eight polling stations.
ClaimThe Palestinian Authority has not held a presidential election in 21 years, and support for it and President Mahmoud Abbas has declined during years of corruption and frustration over settler violence.
ClaimMahmoud Abbas, aged 90, was elected president in 2005 to what was supposed to be a four-year term, and the authority has not held presidential or legislative elections since 2006.
ClaimThe municipal elections were the first to take place since electoral reforms were enacted in response to international pressure, now allowing voting for individuals rather than slates.
ClaimRami Hamdallah, chair of the Central Election Commission, said that holding the elections in Deir el-Balah is a significant achievement and that he hopes to hold elections in other parts of the Gaza Strip in the near future.
ClaimBashar Masri, a Palestinian-American business owner, said on social media that municipal elections are an important step but not enough, and that general elections are needed.
ClaimDeir el-Balah was selected for the election because it suffered less damage than other areas of Gaza during the war.
ConfidenceHigh
StatusMulti-source quoted from Al Jazeerathe outlets behind this status were not recorded for this claim
ClaimIn Gaza, electoral materials such as ballot boxes, stamps, papers, and ink were denied entry by Israeli authorities, so local officials manufactured ballot boxes and used ink from World Health Organization vaccination campaigns.
ClaimThe Deir el-Balah electoral district coordinator Mohammad Abu Nada said that local teams worked under extreme shortages, with prices multiplied tenfold, and that they nevertheless managed to set up polling centres across the city.
ClaimThe 43-year-old Salama Badwan said he was delighted to cast his vote and that his daughter, who recently turned 18, was voting for the first time in her life.
ClaimDunia Salama, an 18-year-old nursing student at Al-Aqsa University, said she was voting for the first time and that her father explained how the elections work.
ClaimDeir el-Balah has become a refuge for hundreds of thousands of displaced people from across Gaza, putting unprecedented pressure on its infrastructure.
ClaimThe municipal elections in Gaza and the West Bank were the first since reforms were enacted in response to international pressure, and were dominated by independents and Fatah.