(Washington Institute for Near East Policy) David Makovsky - • The West Bank municipal balloting on Dec. 23 was the first round of local voting since 1976. The results: a Fatah victory but Hamas gains. •Arafat refused to hold municipal elections as called for in the Oslo process, viewing them as a means of diluting his authority, stripping him of the ability to use municipal positions as an outlet for cronyism. •According to the Palestinian Higher Commission for Local Elections, there was a turnout of 81% among the 144,000 Palestinians eligible to vote, 49% of whom were women. Of the 306 people elected, women defeated men 25 times, and won an additional 21 safe seats in a quota system to widen the representation of women, a total of 46 women elected to office. •Candidates were listed on the ballot as individuals, their affiliations not identified. Local clans remained important power brokers in local decisions. •Hamas's appeal is particularly strong when the issues at play are local, since Hamas has developed a reputation for providing local social services. •Generally, Fatah has been gaining ground relative to Hamas. In recent polls, support for Fatah rose to 40%, while support for Hamas was less than half that.
2004-12-29 00:00:00Full ArticleBACK Visit the Daily Alert Archive