Palestinian elections

Palestinians hold up the green Hamas flag during a protest by supporters of both the Fatah and Hamas movements, as they rally in support of the Palestinian people following Friday noon prayers in Hebron, occupied West Bank, Nov. 3, 2023.

Majority of Palestinians lose trust in Hamas and Fatah, new poll finds

A recent poll by a Palestinian survey center found that trust in Palestinian factions has declined, amid stalled efforts to implement the Gaza peace plan and escalating settler violence in the West Bank.

Displaced Palestinian people look at paintings at an open-air art exhibition at the Bureij camp for Palestinian refugees in the central Gaza Strip on April 28, 2026. The majority of Gaza's 2.4 million people have been displaced, often multiple times, by the war that began with Hamas's attack on southern Israel on October 7, 2023. With displaced families living in tented camps, with serious concerns raised about their living conditions. (Photo by Eyad Baba / AFP via Getty Images) / -- IMAGE RESTRICTED TO EDI

Analysis

Why Abbas' win in Gaza remains 'symbolic,' not rejection of Hamas

Affiliates of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas performed relatively well in the municipal elections, though the vote was marred by complications relating to the war and the exclusion of Hamas.

Adam Lucente

By Adam Lucente

In New York City, reporting on regional news, militancy, climate change

An elections employee tapes a poster with instructions to voters ahead of the upcoming municipal elections in Deir al-Balah in the central Gaza Strip on April 21, 2026.

Feature

Gazans show cautious hope ahead of first local elections in 20 years

The city of Deir al-Balah in central Gaza is set to hold municipal elections for the first time in nearly two decades.

Rasha Abou Jalal

By Rasha Abou Jalal

In Gaza City, reporting on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict

Women read instructions to voters ahead of the upcoming municipal elections in Deir el-Balah in the central Gaza Strip on April 21, 2026.

Analysis

On eve of Palestinian local elections, competition in short supply

With many races unopposed and rivals excluded, the vote underscores a calibrated effort to contain dissent and prioritize stability.

Daoud Kuttab

By Daoud Kuttab

In Amman, reporting on Palestinian politics

Latest News

Iran war deepens Gaza crisis as prices soar, aid falters

Children and families gather to receive free meals shortly before Iftar during the holy month of Ramadan at a displacement camp in central Gaza City, on Feb. 27, 2026.

Daoud Kuttab

By Daoud Kuttab

In Amman, reporting on Palestinian politics

Italy’s Meloni hosts Abbas amid EU Palestinian statehood push: What we know

FILIPPO MONTEFORTE/AFP via Getty Images

Wife of jailed Palestinian leader Marwan Barghouti appeals to Trump for his release

Analysis

Trump squeezes Palestinian leadership as West Bank teeters

An Israeli flag flies along a highway near the settlement of Carmel on Aug. 4, 2025, in the South Hebron Hills of the West Bank.

Elizabeth Hagedorn

By Elizabeth Hagedorn

In Washington, DC, reporting on diplomacy, regional politics, human rights

French President Emmanuel Macron (R) speaks with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas as they make their way to a meeting at the Elysee Presidential Palace in Paris on July 20, 2022.

Amid Gulf pressure, Abbas tells Macron 'Hamas will no longer rule Gaza'

Abbas has increased his anti-Hamas rhetoric in recent weeks as war rages in Gaza and a deal with Israel remains elusive, but the group has refused the call to disarm.

Secretary General of the Executive Committee of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), Hussein al-Sheikh, gestures as he arrives for the 32nd Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) Central Council session in Ramallah on April 23, 2025. Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas on April 23 urged Hamas to free all hostages in Gaza, saying their captivity provided Israel with "excuses" to attack the territory, as rescuers recovered charred bodies from an Israeli strike. (Photo by Zain JAAFAR / AFP) (Photo by

Analysis

Hussein Sheikh as PLO's first vice president: Palestinian reform or Abbas gesture?

Mahmoud Abbas' move to create a vice chairman position within the PLO may signal potential plans for succession, but the decision is clouded by the PLO's waning influence and uncertainty over Palestinian governance in Gaza.

By Rosaleen Carroll

In Washington, DC, US, reporting on the Middle East

Secretary-General of Fatah’s Central Committee Jibril Rajoub looks on during an interview in Paris on July 27, 2024.

Interview

Senior Palestinian official Jibril Rajoub calls for 'Marshall-like plan' to rebuild Gaza

Potential unity with Hamas represents a key dilemma for the Ramallah-based government, which would lose legitimacy with the Western world but gain legitimacy with the Palestinian people.

Jibril Rajoub

Jibril Rajoub

Fatah Central Committee Secretary-General

Palestinians lift flags of the Hamas and Fatah groups as they demonstrate in Ramallah in the occupied West Bank on November 10, 2023, amid ongoing battles between Israel and the Hamas movement in the Gaza Strip.

Guarded optimism on Palestinian reconciliation ahead of Fatah-Hamas meeting in China

Officials in Ramallah say that Hamas accepting the creation of a Palestinian state within the framework of the two-state solution is crucial to progressing Palestinian reconciliation efforts.

Polls show soaring Palestinian support for Barghouti

Polls show soaring Palestinian support for Barghouti as Hamas, Abbas stumble

New polling of Palestinian adults suggests that Hamas has been more popular than Fatah in the West Bank, while Fatah is more popular than Hamas in the Gaza Strip.

JAAFAR ASHTIYEH/AFP via Getty Images

New Palestinian government sworn in as PA reform prospects dwindle

The new Palestinian government is made up of ministers unaffiliated with political factions but loyal to the Palestinian Authority's longtime president.

Daoud Kuttab

By Daoud Kuttab

In Amman, reporting on Palestinian politics

ANGELA WEISS/AFP via Getty Images

Palestinian UN mission makes small gains as all eyes on Qatar cease-fire talks

Daoud Kuttab

By Daoud Kuttab

In Amman, reporting on Palestinian politics

Former Chairman of the Palestine Investment Fund Mohammad Mustafa (L) poses for a photo with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.

Meet Mohammad Mustafa, likely incoming Palestinian PM

Daoud Kuttab

By Daoud Kuttab

In Amman, reporting on Palestinian politics

Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh stands next to a portrait of the Palestinian Authority's President Mahmud Abbas during a cabinet meeting in which he announced his government's resignation and called for "new political measures" in Ramallah on Feb. 26, 2024, amid the ongoing war in the Gaza Strip.

Internal Palestinian discussions heat up in wake of Moscow meeting

Internal Palestinian discussions are heating up as pressure mounts on Israel and Hamas to produce some sort of truce before the beginning of the Islamic holy month of Ramadan.

Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas gesticulates during a joint press conference with the German Chancellor at the Chancellery in Berlin, Germany, on August 16, 2022. (Photo by JENS SCHLUETER / AFP) (Photo by JENS SCHLUETER/AFP via Getty Images)

As Palestinians head to Russia, Abbas ponders least bad option for PM

A large Palestinian delegation will head to Moscow this week to try and reach consensus on a postwar government that could include Hamas representatives in an expanded Palestine Liberation Organization.

NEW YORK, NEW YORK - MAY 15: Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas attends an observation of the 75th anniversary of the Nakba in the General Assembly Hall at the United Nations on May 15, 2023 in New York City. A day of observation of the 75th anniversary of the Nakba was held at the UN with performances by Palestinian singer Sanaa Moussa, Grammy Award-nominee cellist and composer Naseem Alatrash who was accompanied by the New York Arabic Orchestra and directed by Eugene Friesen. Nakba was the displacement o

Palestinians want Abbas to resign, but don't say goodbye yet

Despite his unpopularity at home, President Mahmoud Abbas remains Palestine's primary representative to Western officials and the leadership transition must be slow and cautious.

Yahia al-Sinwar (C), Gaza Strip chief of the Palestinian Islamist Hamas movement, shakes hands with a masked fighter of Hamas' Qassam Brigades during a rally marking the 35th anniversary of the group's foundation, in Gaza City on December 14, 2022. - Hamas will end talks on securing a prisoner exchange with Israel unless there is progress soon, the militant group's leader in the Gaza Strip said on December 14. Since Israel's 2014 invasion of the Gaza Strip, the Islamist group has held the bodies of Israeli

Why Gaza's future will still include Hamas in a larger Palestinian deal

With the day after the war approaching, the Palestinian leadership in the West Bank needs Hamas in Gaza as much as Hamas needs the Palestinian Authority.