Palestinian elections have been postponed. President Mahmoud Abbas issued a decree on Saturday setting simultaneous presidential and legislative elections for September 11, 2027, the official Palestinian news agency WAFA reported. The decision followed approval by the Executive Committee of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO).
Palestinian elections postponed: November vote cancelled
According to WAFA, the new decree followed the cancellation of Decree No. 4 of 2026, which had called legislative elections for November 28, 2026. It invites Palestinians in Jerusalem, the West Bank and the Gaza Strip to take part in free and direct elections for the president and the Palestinian Legislative Council.
The reasons cited include continued attacks by Israeli occupation forces, settlement expansion, settler violence, raids across the West Bank including occupied East Jerusalem, movement restrictions and Israel’s withholding of Palestinian tax revenues. According to Al Jazeera, the PLO also said Israel had not allowed election materials or international observers into Gaza.
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Time for dialogue, and disappointment
The PLO Executive Committee said meetings in Cairo had recommended the delay to allow a comprehensive national dialogue and efforts to remove Israeli obstacles to free, fair and inclusive elections. It renewed calls on the United Nations and the Security Council to provide international protection for Palestinians.
Mustafa Barghouti, secretary-general of the Palestinian National Initiative, told Al Jazeera there was “great disappointment” among Palestinians over the decision. The last Palestinian parliamentary elections were held in 2006.
Sources: WAFA, Al Jazeera
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