Elections in Palestine
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Elections for the
The first
The
Importance of the elections
Elections in the
In October 2007, 2 ex-ministers and 45 PLC members were in Israeli detention.[9] In July 2012, there were 4,706 Palestinian prisoners in Israeli prisons. Of these, 22 were PLC members, of which 18 were in administrative detention.[10][11][12] The November 2013 figures of Addameer give about 5,000 prisoners imprisoned by Israel, of which 14 are members of the Palestinian Legislative Council (10 PLC members in administrative detention).[13]
Hamas announced its intention to once again boycott local elections and has repeatedly prevented free, local elections since it first took power of Gaza in 2004. [14]
In the Gaza Strip
Following the Fatah–Hamas conflict that started in 2006, Hamas formed a government ruling the Gaza Strip without elections. Gazan Prime Minister Haniyye announced in September 2012 the formation of a second Hamas government, also without elections.
Parliamentary elections
1996 parliamentary elections
At the 1996 general election, Fatah won 55 of the 88 seats from multi-member constituencies, with the number of representatives from each constituency determined by population. Some seats were set aside for the Christian and Samaritan communities. 51 seats were allocated to the West Bank, 37 to the Gaza Strip. Five out of 25 female candidates won a seat.
2006 parliamentary elections
At the 2006 legislative election, six parties and 4 independents won seats. Change and Reform (i.e., Hamas) won 44.45% of the vote and 74 seats, while Fatah won 41.43% of the vote and 45 seats.
Presidential elections
1996 presidential elections
The 1996 president election was won by
2005 presidential elections
Mahmoud Abbas gained 62.52% of the vote at the 2005 presidential election, while his most important competing candidate, Mustafa Barghouti, won 19.48%.
Local elections
2005 local elections
Local elections in 2005 were held in four stages, but were never completed. The last stage was on December 23, 2005, with elections in 26 municipalities that had over 140,000 registered voters in Jericho and 25 villages in the West Bank. The elections were observed by the Congress of the Council of Europe, with the head of mission, Christopher Newbury, commenting "Inside the polling stations, the Congress observed a free and fair election. Outside them, further improvements remain to be made."[16]
Further local elections were planned, as over a quarter of the Palestinian population had had no chance to vote in them, including those in major towns such as Hebron, but they did not take place, due to conflict between Hamas and Fatah after the legislative elections of 2006.
2010 and 2012 local elections
Four year term of local councils in Palestinian Authority expired in January 2009. Council of Ministers called for local elections to be held on 17 July 2010, but after Fatah proved incapable of agreeing on list of candidates, the call for elections was canceled on 10 June 2010. The election was postponed and was later held in 2012 after several delays.
See Timeline of the 2012 Local Elections
See here for a useful set of maps in Arabic.
2016 and 2017 local elections
The elections were planned for October 8, 2016 but were delayed until May 13, 2017.
2021–22 local elections
The elections were held on 11 December 2021.[17]
Central Elections Commission
Following the establishment of the Palestinian Authority in 1993, the "Elections Commission" was formed to conduct the Palestinian presidential and legislative elections in 1996, the first elections in the Palestinian Authority. The Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics (PCBS) was given the task of voter registration.
The Central Elections Commission (CEC) was established in October 2002 as an independent and neutral body under the
Under the Local Council Elections Law No. (10) of 2005, the CEC became responsible for organizing local council elections, in addition to organizing elections of the President of the Palestinian National Authority and members of the Palestinian Legislative Council.[18]
External election assistance
The
See also
- 1923 Palestinian Legislative Council election
- Electoral calendar
- Electoral system
Notes
- Oslo II-accord:
Article I:
1. Israel shall transfer powers and responsibilities as specified in this Agreement ... Israel shall continue to exercise powers and responsibilities not so transferred.
Article IX:
5 a. In accordance with the DOP, the Council will not have powers and responsibilities in the sphere of foreign relations, which sphere includes the establishment abroad of embassies, consulates or other types of foreign missions and posts or permitting their establishment in the West Bank or the Gaza Strip, the appointment of or admission of diplomatic and consular staff, and the exercise of diplomatic functions.
5 b. ... the PLO may conduct negotiations and sign agreements with states or international organizations for the benefit of the Council in the following cases only: 1. economic agreements ...; 2. agreements with donor countries for the purpose of implementing arrangements for the provision of assistance to the Council ; 3. agreements for the purpose of implementing the regional development plans ...; 4. cultural, scientific and educational agreements.
References
- ^ Vladimir, Pran (June 2008). "When are the next Palestinian elections?" (PDF). Palestinian Basic Law. IFES West Bank & Gaza.
- ^ Nahmias, Roee (16 December 2008). "Report: Abbas won't run for another term". Ynetnews.
- ^ Aude Signoles, Local Government in Palestine. University of Galatasaray, Turkey; October 2010.
- ^ Elections Law No 9 of 2005, Article (2). 13 August 2005. Source
- ^ "People's Daily Online - Abbas announces amended electoral law". en.people.cn. Archived from the original on 24 January 2018. Retrieved 24 January 2018.
- ^ "Palestinians Support Electoral Reforms | Angus Reid Public Opinion". www.angus-reid.com. Archived from the original on 19 July 2012. Retrieved 27 January 2022.
- ^ UN General Assembly, Resolution 58/292. Status of the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem. 17 mei 2004 (doc.nr. A/RES/58/292).
- ^ ProCon.org, 1995 Oslo Interim Agreement Archived 1 October 2015 at the Wayback Machine. 28 September 1995. pdf at unhcr
- ^ CEIRPP, 4 October 2007, Report of the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People, pag. 11, par. 30 (doc.nr. A/62/35)
- ^ Addameer, Addameer Monthly Detention Report - 1 July 2012 Archived 19 October 2012 at the Wayback Machine.
- ^ Addameer, Palestinian Legislative Council Members Archived 2013-04-12 at the Wayback Machine, June 2012
- ^ Middle East Monitor (MEMO), Palestinian elected representatives are still detained by Israel Archived December 24, 2013, at the Wayback Machine, 14 September 2011
- ^ Addameer Monthly Detention Report - 1 November 2013 Archived December 24, 2013, at the Wayback Machine.
- ^ "Local Elections (2021-2022)". ECFR. 7 October 2021. Retrieved 25 February 2024.
- ^ Central Elections Commission (CEC), Results of first General election, 1996. Here available Archived February 2, 2018, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Palestinian local elections: marked improvement over previous rounds but major challenges remain, say Congress observers, un.org, December 2005, accessed 23 May 2021
- ^ Welle (www.dw.com), Deutsche. "Palestinians vote in West Bank elections amid growing anger | DW | 11.12.2021". DW.COM. Retrieved 14 December 2021.
- ^ a b About the CEC Archived December 10, 2018, at the Wayback Machine. Central Elections Commission. Accessed December 2015
- ^ a b c http://www.ifes.org/westbankgaza.html?page=past Archived November 28, 2008, at the Wayback Machine IFES West Bank/Gaza. Accessed June 30, 2009
External links
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