Palestinian Election Body Opens Candidate Registration for Nov. 28 Vote
The commission said it began accepting candidacy applications at 8 am local time (0500GMT) at its headquarters in Al-Bireh, in the central West Bank, and at its offices in Deir al-Balah, in central Gaza, according to a statement.
Registration will run for 12 days, closing Oct. 7, with the commission citing "strong interest" from prospective candidates at both its Ramallah and Deir al-Balah offices.
Candidates seeking seats on the Legislative Council, the Palestinian parliament, must run as part of electoral lists — individual candidacies will not be permitted, the commission said. Each list must include a minimum of 16 candidates and no more than 132.
The commission emphasized that all lists must meet legally required gender representation thresholds: at least one woman must appear among the first three names on any list, and one woman must appear in every subsequent group of three candidates.
Candidacy applications must be filed by each list's coordinator and authorized representative, following completion of required forms and submission of supporting documents, the commission said. It cautioned that filing an application does not guarantee it will be accepted or approved — all submissions will undergo review to confirm they meet legal standards.
Under the commission's approved election timetable, campaigning is set to begin Nov. 6, while early voting for security forces will be held Nov. 26.
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas issued a decree on July 9 setting Nov. 28 as the date for legislative elections spanning East Jerusalem, the occupied West Bank and Gaza Strip — the first such vote since 2006.
The Palestinian Legislative Council has remained inactive since 2007, following an internal Palestinian political rift, and was formally dissolved by a 2018 ruling from the Supreme Constitutional Court.
A previous attempt at elections, scheduled for 2021, was scrapped after Abbas postponed the vote, citing the absence of Israeli guarantees for Palestinian participation in occupied East Jerusalem.
The Nov. 28 vote will mark only the third Legislative Council election in Palestinian history, following polls held in 1996 and 2006. The incoming council will seat 132 members.
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