West Bank/Gaza

The victory of the Islamist movement Hamas in the January 2006 Palestinian Legislative Council (PLC) elections marked the near culmination of an election cycle that included the first-ever presidential election conducted in January 2005, and four out of five rounds of municipal council elections – the first to be held in three decades. With Hamas now at the helm of the PLC, Palestinian civil society is the primary mechanism through which to provide oversight to the government and ensure that it acts in a manner representative of the Palestinian people. With the potential for the formation of a new national unity government on the horizon, and building upon its work of the past decade, the International Republican Institute’s (IRI) program focuses on informing policy makers of citizen preferences, improving the capacity of women to participate and lead in political processes, and supporting the development of new democratic leadership.

Public Opinion Research

Since 1994, IRI has been conducting public opinion polls in the West Bank and Gaza – first in cooperation with Center for Palestine Research and Studies (CPRS) and more recently with the Development Studies Program (DSP) at Birzeit University. During this period, approximately 100,000 respondents have participated in IRI surveys, equating to an estimated one-quarter of all Palestinian households. In addition to the first exit poll ever conducted in the Arab world at the time of the January 1996 PLC election, IRI polls include the first post-9/11 poll in the region, conducted in early October 2001, the Palestinian presidential election exit poll in January 2005, and most recently the exit poll for the January 2006 PLC election.

In an environment that has lacked regular elections to measure public sentiment, opinion polls and surveys have been instrumental tools in gauging public opinion on issues of importance, informing decision-makers, and assessing the impact of events. DSP continues to conduct regular comprehensive national polls examining a number of critical issues affecting Palestinian governance and society, including living conditions, the performance of the current government and institutions, the proposed unity government and negotiations with Israel. During the January 2006 PLC elections, DSP conducted an exit poll at more than 250 polling locations throughout the West Bank and Gaza using more than 1,000 staff. An estimated 10,000 surveys were completed.

Women's Programs

IRI's partnership with the Palestinian Initiative for the Promotion of Global Dialogue and Democracy (MIFTAH) began in 2003 with a project to promote women's political participation. This project was undertaken on multiple levels to enhance women's leadership and facilitate women's electoral success by creating a network of women's organizations and leaders from more than 20 civil society and public sector entities.

IRI’s work with MIFTAH led to the establishment of nine local Women's Electoral Support Points (WESPs) in the West Bank and Gaza. These sites provided decentralized assistance and training to emerging women leaders and potential candidates ahead of 2005-2006 municipal elections and the January 2006 PLC elections.

During the first part of the project, activities focused on identifying and preparing women candidates for the first phase of municipal elections. In advance of the January PLC elections, IRI and MIFTAH adopted a two-track approach to provide support to women candidates who intended to run in the PLC elections, as well as to provide continued support for candidates in the remaining round of municipal elections. WESP coordinators worked individually and collectively with more than 400 women candidates of which 175 won seats in local councils. For PLC elections, MIFTAH worked with 25 candidates, eight of whom were elected.

Most Palestinians continue to be deeply dissatisfied with current conditions – both political and economic – in the West Bank and Gaza. While statehood, a potential unity government and other national issues regarding refugees, settlements, the separation wall and Jerusalem remain pressing concerns on the political agenda, there is simultaneously a demand to address endemic problems of corruption and the lack of transparency in Palestinian Authority institutions.

The most recent and telling example of this desire for an alternative to one-party rule is the January 2006 PLC elections. The elections were a well-run, multi-party campaign. More than 70 percent of Palestinians said they believed it was fair, and 96.5 percent were satisfied or somewhat satisfied with the Central Election Commission's (CEC) performance.

The election of a PLC dominated by Hamas marked the first time a non-PLO political entity was elected to govern. Although Hamas' electoral success has dealt an unquestionable blow to progress on the roadmap for peace, the Palestinian electorate must be commended for its commitment to a democratic election process, including those supportive of PLO-affiliated organizations and those within the Fatah party.

IRI has been engaged in the West Bank and Gaza since 1994, working to strengthen civil society organizations; fostering policy research and dialogue on democracy, good governance, and legal reform; supporting survey research; and promoting women's political participation. IRI's local partners have included the DSP at Birzeit University, the Union of Palestinian Medical Relief Committees (UPMRC), the Health, Development, Information, and Policy Institute (HDIP), the PLC, CPRS, and MIFTAH.

With the potential for the formation of a new national unity government on the horizon, IRI-supported programs in public opinion research will continue to be a vital resource in helping inform civil society leaders and Palestinian democrats of citizen priorities and preferences, stimulating policy dialogue, and assisting the development of issue-based advocacy campaigns.

IRI will support MIFTAH to train recently-elected women on the role of an elected official, issue advocacy and constituency outreach. MIFTAH will also train women who may in the future have positions of leadership in their respective communities on basic leadership skills, single-issue campaigns and grassroots development.

Political Overview

Chief of State: President Mahmoud Abbas

Type of Government: parliamentary democracy

Suffrage: universal, age 18

Elections Calendar

Program Overview

Focus of Program: support for democratic legislative and local elections

Funding Source:U.S. Department of State’s Middle East Partnership Initiative