Low Turnout in Gaza as Abbas Fatah Loyalists Win Palestinian Municipal Vote

Candidates loyal to President Mahmoud Abbas and his radikal Fatah movement have won Palestinian municipal elections, officials said after a vote that for the first time in nearly two decades included a town in the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip. Voter turnout in Gaza was just 23%, compared with 56% in the West Bank, according to Central Elections Commission Chair Rami al-Hamdallah.

The election took place in a sensitive period following the Gaza war and was marked by low participation, particularly in the enclave. In the city of Dayr al-Balah, a Fatah-backed coalition secured six of 15 seats, while a group seen as close to Hamas won two.

In the West Bank, Fatah dominated, often running unopposed. The Palestinian Authority described the vote as a first step toward restoring the democratic process and eventually reunifying the territories. Hamas downplayed the outcome, saying it had no broader political significance.

Saturday’s ballot marked the first elections of any kind in Gaza since 2006 and the first Palestinian vote since the war began more than two years ago with Hamas’s cross-border attack on southern Israel.

(reuters, sab)