Palestinian official Hassan Khraisha refuses to join local polls amid criticism of new rules

Deputy speaker of the Palestinian Legislative Council (PLC), Hassan Khraisha, has announced he will boycott the local elections called by the Palestinian Authority in Ramallah, saying he will not participate either personally or through any official body.

In a video statement released on Thursday, Khraisha said the elections are being conducted under conditions dictated by an election law issued through a presidential decree. He added that Palestinians “are not a flock to be led according to whims”.

Khraisha argued that turning local councils into politically driven elections under what he described as political conditions amounts to a “coup against the law and established norms”. He said municipalities are public institutions belonging to citizens and should focus solely on providing services.

He also said the right to stand for office and vote is inherent and should not be restricted by conditions imposed under external pressure, which he said is framed as American and Western “reform”.

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Khraisha added that Palestinians will continue to face demands for further concessions regardless of what steps they take to satisfy Western requirements.

He said the current priority should be unifying the Palestinian position to confront occupation plans aimed at eliminating the Palestinian cause.

President Mahmoud Abbas has recently amended the election law, a move that has drawn warnings from human rights organisations that the changes undermine the right to political participation.

Under the revised rules, candidates must sign a declaration accepting their nomination and committing to the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) as the sole legitimate representative of the Palestinian people, its political and national programme, and relevant international resolutions.

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