ABBAS POSTPONES PALESTINIAN ELECTIONS TO SEPTEMBER 2027

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas issued a decree on Saturday postponing legislative elections that had been scheduled for 28 November 2026, according to the official Palestinian news agency WAFA. The decree calls instead for simultaneous presidential and legislative elections to be held on 11 September 2027. Abbas's office confirmed the new timetable through WAFA, which first reported the move. The elections, originally planned to cover only the legislature, will now combine both the presidency and parliament under the revised schedule.

The decree followed a decision by the executive committee of the Palestine Liberation Organisation and consultations with Palestinian factions and political forces, WAFA reported. Those discussions produced what WAFA described as a national consensus on the reasons for delaying the vote. The consensus cited obstacles posed by Israeli measures to holding elections on the previously scheduled date. It also pointed to a need to establish suitable political, security and field conditions to allow for what the decree termed free, fair and inclusive elections.

The announcement marks a shift from a legislative-only vote to a combined presidential and legislative process, according to WAFA's reporting of the decree. No further detail on the specific Israeli measures referenced in the decree, or on how the required political and security conditions would be established, was given in the material released by WAFA. The new date of 11 September 2027 sets the next confirmed point at which both sets of elections are due to take place. Further details on preparations for the rescheduled vote have not yet been reported.