Hamas signals election return in bid for broader Palestinian coalition

Hamas will participate in upcoming Palestinian elections as part of the “broadest possible national coalition,” a member of the group’s political bureau said.

Hussam Badran said that Hamas, along with most Palestinian factions and electoral blocs, opposes imposing “political conditions or requiring participants to adopt a specific political program.”

He said the Palestinian Central Elections Commission and the judiciary are working “to ensure Palestinians can freely choose their political program.”

Badran described the elections as a “historic opportunity” to reshape the Palestinian political landscape and “end two decades of unilateral decision-making on national affairs.”

He said the elections were long overdue and accused the Palestinian leadership of unilaterally setting their timing and procedures, unlike the 2006 and 2021 elections, which he said were held following detailed national consensus.

Badran said Palestinians have “an inherent right” to choose their leaders and political program, whether through legislative elections in the Palestinian territories or elections for the Palestinian National Council, which he described as the “broader representative body for Palestinians.”

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas announced earlier this week that legislative elections will be held on November 28, 2026, followed by the convening of the National Council and presidential elections in 2027.

The Palestinian Legislative Council has been inactive since 2007, following the political split and Hamas’ takeover of the Gaza Strip. Abbas dissolved the council in 2018. The last Palestinian legislative elections were held in 2006.

The Palestinian political system has remained divided since 2007, with Hamas administering Gaza, where Israel has been waging a war since October 2023, while a government formed by the Fatah movement administers the occupied West Bank.

By Vafa Guliyeva