Postponement of Elections to the Palestinian Legislative Council

The Central Elections Committee of the Palestinian Authority has informed Mahmoud Abbas (Abu Mazen), the president of the PA, that it cannot carry out the elections for the Palestinian Legislative Council (PLC) as scheduled on 17 July. The reason, according to the CEC, is that it needs at least two months following ratification of the new elections law to make proper arrangements. That law has passed its third reading in parliament but has not yet been signed by Abu Mazen and therefore has not gone into effect. But beyond the technical constraints, suspicions are being voiced that the delay is due to the desire of leading figures in Fatah, Abu Mazen’s own party, to gain a few months’ grace in order to put their house in order and improve their chances of winning.