Palestinian center calls for postponing Legislative Council elections
The Palestinian Center for Policy and Survey Research (PCPSR), based in Ramallah, Palestine, stated that elections to the Palestinian Legislative Council should be postponed by three to four months. According to the center, this would make it possible to wait for the results of Israel’s elections scheduled for October 27 and remove obstacles to credible voting, The Jerusalem Post reports.
Obstacles to voting
PCPSR identified five structural problems. Among them is uncertainty over whether Palestinians will be able to vote in Area C and East Jerusalem, which are under Israeli control. The center claims that Israel may obstruct the electoral process by confiscating election materials, arresting candidates, and restricting the participation of certain communities.
PCPSR also cited the Palestinian Authority’s lack of an effective security and administrative presence throughout the Gaza Strip and in an increasing number of areas of the West Bank. According to the center, under such conditions it is impossible to ensure the security of polling stations, protect staff, guarantee ballot secrecy, and implement the results. Without the Palestinian Authority’s administrative control, elections in Gaza may be accompanied by large-scale disruptions.
Analysts also pointed to the unresolved political and legal status of Hamas and the lack of reconciliation between Hamas and Fatah. They warned that significant Hamas representation in the Legislative Council could complicate the situation, as many international donors link aid for Gaza’s reconstruction to excluding Hamas from executive governance.
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Risk of a fragmented parliament
PCPSR also drew attention to amendments to electoral legislation requiring candidate lists and individual candidates to explicitly confirm their commitment to the Palestine Liberation Organization as the sole legitimate representative. According to the center, this requirement may limit the participation of political movements, independent groups, and coalitions that disagree with certain PLO arrangements.
Confidence in the electoral process, according to PCPSR, has been weakened by mass displacement in Gaza, the Palestinian Authority’s financial insolvency, settler violence, and legislative changes. The center also believes that holding presidential elections in 2027 after the Legislative Council elections could cause constitutional instability if the newly elected council questions Mahmoud Abbas’s executive powers.
According to an August 2026 PCPSR poll, among likely voters, Fatah was supported by 32%, Hamas by 29%, third forces combined by 18%, while 21% were undecided. The center forecasts a more fragmented parliament than after the 2006 elections and notes that official Fatah is unlikely to win a parliamentary majority unless opposition forces remain divided.
