Fatah fails to get strong nod

Palestinian president’s party fares poorly in several key cities in local council polls

Palestinian president’s party fares poorly in key cities in local council polls.

RAMALLAH: President Mahmoud Abbas and his Fatah movement have failed to get the sweeping endorsement they have been hoping for in local council polls in the West Bank.

With nearly all of the votes counted, the official Fatah list won 10 out of 15 seats in the West Bank’s largest city, Hebron, election officials said.

Fatah renegades did better than the movement’s official candidates in the cities of Nablus and Ramallah, as well as the town of Jenin, the officials said.

Fatah, once the dominant Palestinian movement, has been plagued by infighting for years, and it was not unusual for those who failed to get on Fatah’s official lists to compete against their party colleagues.

The toxic rivalry between Fatah and the Islamic militant Hamas also loomed large over the first Palestinian ballot in six years.

The political rift, which broke open after Hamas seized Gaza from Abbas in 2007, made it unlikely that Saturday’s vote will be followed anytime soon by overdue elections for parliament and president.

Hamas prevented voting in the Gaza Strip and boycotted the contest in the West Bank, arguing that elections can only be held once Hamas and Fatah reconcile.

“We ask to stop this disgrace,” said Hamas spokesman Fawzi Barhoum, dismissing Saturday’s vote as meaningless.

Saeb Erekat, a senior Abbas aide, countered that “Hamas cannot have a veto on democracy.”

Critics say the group banned voting in Gaza to prevent largely vanquished rivals, particularly from Fatah, from gaining a new foothold.

Efforts to heal the Palestinian political split have failed.

The election was held at a time when Abbas’ Palestinian Authority, a self-rule government in parts of the Israeli-controlled West Bank, is facing a slew of difficulties.

While Saturday’s vote to some extent measured the standing of Fatah, clan loyalties also play a major role in local elections.

Some Palestinians said there was no point in voting.

“People are crushed by heavy burdens,” said Mohammed Nasser, a 25-year-old accountant in the city of Ramallah. “Would these elections solve our problems? Of course not.”

Local council elections were last held in the West Bank and Gaza in several stages in 2004 and 2005, and Hamas won control of a number of main cities at the time.

This was followed by presidential elections in January 2005, with Abbas chosen to replace Yasser Arafat who had died two months earlier.

In January 2006, Hamas defeated Fatah by a large margin in parliamentary elections. The rivals set up separate governments in the West Bank and Gaza and failed to agree on terms for holding new elections.

Elected politicians in both camps have been losing support because they have overstayed their mandates.

Meanwhile, yesterday, Fatah was claiming victory ahead of the results of the local elections.

“Fatah won a victory in this election.

“Despite Hamas’ efforts, participation was good, which proves that people reject Hamas policies,” party spokesman Ahmad Assaf said.

The Central Elections Commission put turnout at 54.8%.