Gaza Set to Hold First Local Election in Two Decades

For 20 years, Palestinians in Gaza have endured Israeli bombardments, repeated displacement and a brutal dictatorship. Under such conditions, the holding of elections seemed a distant prospect.

Now, Palestinian officials are making preparations for municipal elections this weekend in a single Gaza city, Deir al-Balah, one of the few places where the Israeli military did not conduct a large-scale ground invasion during two years of war, though it still bears many signs of bombardment.

“My whole generation has been waiting for this opportunity,” said Abd al-Rahman al-Masri, a 27-year-old doctor who has never voted before. He said he wanted the next municipal council to find solutions to Deir al-Balah’s problems, from water and sewage to a lack of space in the cemeteries.

Roughly 70,000 people are eligible to vote in Saturday’s election, organizers said. For many, it is a long-awaited chance to have a say in how their city is run.

The election is being organized by the Palestinian Authority, which governs the Israeli-occupied West Bank, and its involvement is notable given that it was forcibly removed from power in Gaza by Hamas in 2007. Since then, Hamas has controlled the appointment of mayors and municipal council members across the territory.