Hamas has rejected suggestions that upcoming Palestinian Legislative Council elections could be postponed, calling for the vote to be held as scheduled and for arrangements to be made to ensure a free and fair electoral process.Hamas spokesperson Hazem Qassem said in a statement on September 9 that the group was concerned by recent remarks from Palestinian Authority officials raising the possibility that the elections might not take place on time.
Qassem called for adherence to the announced electoral timetable and said the necessary political and administrative arrangements should be completed to allow the vote to proceed.His comments follow remarks by senior Fatah official Jibril Rajoub, who said that he didn’t believe elections scheduled for Nov.28 would take place on that date because the necessary political arrangements and consensus had not yet been finalised.
Qassem accused the Fatah leadership of using the election issue to advance partisan interests, arguing that decisions concerning the Palestinian political system should not remain under the control of a single faction.He also criticised the prolonged absence of elections for major Palestinian political institutions.
The last Palestinian legislative elections were held in 2006, when Hamas won a majority of seats, followed by the political split between Hamas and Fatah.Palestinian legislative and presidential elections were scheduled again in 2021 but were postponed.