Abbas Loyalists Win Palestinian Municipal Elections, Including some Seats in Gaza
Only 1 Gaza municipality voted as Abbas-aligned lists won many West Bank races and several seats went unopposed, officials said.
- On Saturday, April 25, 2026, Palestinians held municipal elections across 183 authorities, including Deir al-Balah's first Gaza vote in over 20 years, where officials announced Fatah-backed candidates won six of 15 council seats.
- The vote occurred under a new election law signed by Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on November 19, 2025, which lowered the candidacy age to 23 and required candidates to pledge commitment to the Palestine Liberation Organization program.
- Turnout in Deir al-Balah reached 22.7%, significantly lower than the 56% recorded in the West Bank, while lists aligned with Hamas secured two of the 15 contested council seats.
- Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Mustafa called the results "an important first step" in strengthening democratic life, while Hamas spokesman Hazem Qassem also termed the vote "an important step" for rebuilding Palestinian legitimacy.
- President Abbas committed to following this local cycle with Fatah movement elections and a Palestinian National Council vote this year, marking his first public commitment to a national-level electoral calendar in two decades.
25 Articles
25 Articles
Local elections have taken place for the first time since the beginning of the Gaza war. Hope is more important than the result.
Mahmoud Abbas' Fatah party dominated the municipal election in Palestine. But not everywhere it was successful.
Gazans Vote in First Local Elections Since 2006 Under Hamas Rule
Residents in a central Gaza city voted this weekend in the first local elections held in the territory in more than two decades, a largely symbolic process that gave some Palestinians a rare opportunity to express political will under Hamas rule.
Palestinians in Gaza’s Deir al-Balah elect local leaders in first election in two decades
Palestinians living in the Israeli-occupied West Bank and the Gazan community of Deir al-Balah this weekend headed to the ballots to elect their local leaders. For the Gazans who participated, it was their first local vote in more than two decades. Palestinian authorities hailed the vote a success and said it paves the way for more elections being held in war-torn enclave in the near future.
Only 23% voted in Gaza’s Deir al-Balah for local elections
Gaza's first elections in nearly two decades did not generate widespread public enthusiasm. Local elections in Deir al-Balah produced a strikingly low turnout of just 23 per cent, turning what was meant to signal political resilience and national unity into a reflection of deepening public disillusionment with Palestinian institutions. For many Palestinians, the result is an indicator of a wider legitimacy crisis facing a political system weaken…
For the first time in 20 years, residents of the city of Deir Al-Balah in the Gaza Strip were able to elect a new city council, but the voter turnout was low
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- 44% of the sources lean Left, 44% of the sources lean Right
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