Fatah Claims 'Sweeping Victory' as Gaza and West Bank Municipal Election Results Announced April 26

On April 26, 2026, the Palestinian Central Elections Commission announced the final results of the April 25 municipal elections held in the West Bank and Gaza's Deir el-Balah. Fatah declared a 'sweeping victory,' capturing 6 of 15 council seats in Deir el-Balah (Gaza's pilot location) and winning the majority of West Bank councils, including retaking Jenin, which had previously been under Hamas-allied Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) influence. Voter turnout in Deir el-Balah was 22.7% (vs. 53.44% in the West Bank), reflecting mass displacement and an outdated civil registry — fewer than 70,000 eligible voters were registered in Gaza out of a pre-war population of over 2 million. The CEC noted ballot papers were locally printed in Gaza due to logistics constraints. Four lists competed in Deir el-Balah: 'Peace and Construction,' 'Deir el-Balah Brings Us Together,' 'Future of Deir el-Balah,' and 'Renaissance of Deir el-Balah' — Hamas did not field candidates. If the Deir el-Balah vote is deemed successful, the CEC indicated it could pave the way for elections elsewhere in Gaza. The vote is widely viewed as a key political precondition for Palestinian Authority re-engagement in Gaza governance and a prerequisite for Phase Two ceasefire negotiations and international reconstruction funding.