Palestinian authority formally delays elections, despite western pressure
By AARON BOXERMAN
The Palestinian Authority postponed by nearly a year the first major Palestinian elections in two decades on Saturday, a move that could ignite further rancor against the body’s aging leadership at home and abroad.
Mahmoud Abbas, the Palestinian Authority president, had set the legislative elections for Nov. 28 following pressure from Western allies such as France and Canada to reform. But critics said from the start that Abbas, 90, was unlikely to actually carry out a vote that could threaten his grip on power.
On Saturday, Abbas officially issued a decree delaying the planned vote until Sept. 11, 2027. For the first time in recent years, Abbas also said presidential elections to contest his decades-long rule would be held on the same date.
Abbas’ office blamed Israeli restrictions for the postponement, as well as the poor conditions in the Gaza Strip following three years of conflict between Israel and the militant group Hamas. But the decision was poised to deepen frustration with the Palestinian Authority, which administers parts of the Israeli-occupied West Bank.
Abbas was elected to a four-year term in early 2005 after the death of his predecessor, Yasser Arafat. In the decades since, he has yet to hold a second presidential vote; instead, he has cracked down on rivals and worked closely with Israel on security.
Much of the Palestinian public has long felt disillusioned with Abbas, whose government has been dogged by accusations of corruption and authoritarianism. Opinion polls regularly show large majorities of Palestinians calling for his resignation.
Mohammed Dahlan, a prominent opponent of Abbas who lives in exile in the United Arab Emirates, wrote on social media after the announcement that the Palestinian leader was “clinging blindly to a chair drained of legitimacy.”
European governments have long seen Abbas’ government as the main viable alternative to Hamas in Gaza, leading them to pay billions of euros to support the Palestinian Authority’s budget. But they have also pushed for democratic reforms and would likely view Abbas’ move as backtracking on previous pledges.
Last July, Abbas sent President Emmanuel Macron of France a letter declaring a commitment to hold elections within a year. Macron later cited Abbas’ commitment to an “overhaul of Palestinian governance” when recognizing a Palestinian state at the United Nations General Assembly.
“Only a rejuvenated Palestinian Authority can represent the Palestinian people on the world stage and negotiate a lasting peace with Israel,” Jean-Noël Barrot, the French foreign minister, wrote last month in The Wall Street Journal, concluding: “Palestinian elections now.”
The last significant Palestinian elections were held in 2006, when Hamas trounced Abbas’ Fatah party to win a majority in the Palestinian parliament, leading to a year of uneasy power-sharing.
A brief civil war erupted the following year, when Hamas expelled Fatah from the Gaza Strip. In the years since, Hamas has dominated Gaza while Abbas’ rule has been confined to small pockets in the Israeli-occupied West Bank.
In 2021, Abbas called another legislative election only to cancel it just weeks beforehand. He blamed Israel for not allowing the vote to take place in East Jerusalem, but analysts said it had become clear that Abbas’ rivals were likely to gain more power if the elections went ahead.
