Palestinian Radio Stations Campaign to Take Participation in Elections

Ramallah, MINA – About 25 local radio stations in the West Bank on Sunday started a campaign to asking citizens to register with the Palestinian Central Election Commission (CEC) to ensure the largest participation in the legislative and presidential elections, which will be held on May and July.

CEC spokesman Fareed Taamallah said the one-hour joint broadcast campaign from 11 a.m. to 12 p.m. local time urged citizens to ensure their registration as voters with the Commission by the February 16, 2021 deadline.

The Palestinian National News Agency WAFA reported that voter registration is a prerequisite for voting and candidacy in the upcoming elections.

Taamallah appealed to all print and audiovisual media to contribute to increasing public awareness about the election with information issued by the Central CEC through its official platform.

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CEC said as many as 2.4 million Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza have so far registered to vote for the legislative and presidential elections.

This number constitutes 85 percent of the total eligible applicants, according to data from the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics (PCBS).

This percentage of turnout is expected to reach 90 percent on the day the registration ends.

CEC has made online voter registration available via its website: www.elections.ps since the issuance of a presidential decree calling for elections. The Palestinian Election Commission also operates 80 information and voter registration centers in several schools.

During the field registration period, CEC will dispatch a field team of 600 employees to all districts in the West Bank and Gaza Strip.

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The team is equipped with tablet devices to help residents register their names online or ask for prior registration information, and change their polling location if their place of residence has changed.

CEC considers the high participation of e-registration following the issuance of the presidential decree as an indication of how eager Palestinians are to participate in the elections and elect their representatives in decision-making positions.

“This will revive hopes for an end to internal divisions and a return of democracy to Palestine. Both are key components towards the independence that the Palestinian people aspire to, regardless of their political affiliation,” Chairperson Hanna Nasir conclude.

According to the Palestinian Presidential Decree, the elections will be held in three stages, legislative elections on May 22, executive elections on July 31, which will be administered by the CEC.

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Then national council elections will be held on August 31 in accordance with the rules of the Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) and national consensus, if possible.

The last Palestinian election was held in 2006, which was won by Hamas in majority, then followed by the presidential election which was won by Mahmud Abbas as head of the Palestinian Authority.

The next election, if it successful, will be the third election in Palestinian history, after the 1996 and 2005 presidential elections, followed by the 1996 and 2006 legislative elections. (T/R7/RE1)

Mi’raj News Agency (MINA)