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Source: http://www.csmonitor.com/2004/1014/p06s02-wome.html
Arafat's Local Election Gambit
(Christian Science Monitor) Ben Lynfield- The PA is organizing the first local elections in the West Bank and Gaza Strip since 1976. Registration for the elections was due to close Wednesday and the first round of polling is slated for Dec. 9. The PA sees the vote as a prelude to legislative and presidential elections and as an initiative that could give a major boost to Arafat's legitimacy and help answer calls for democratic reform. The risk for the PA, however, is that Hamas will be crowned the most popular Palestinian political faction, at least in Gaza.