View source for 1996 Palestinian general election

{{Short description|none}}
{{pp|small=yes}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=November 2023}} 
{{Infobox election
| country = Palestine
| election_date = 20 January 1996

| module = {{Infobox election
| embed = yes
| election_name = Presidential election
| type = presidential
| next_election = 2005 Palestinian presidential election
| next_year = 2005
| turnout =

| image1 = Leader of the PLO, Yasser Arafat, 1996 Dan Hadani Archive.jpg
| candidate1 = '''[[Yasser Arafat]]'''
| party1 = Fatah
| popular_vote1 = '''643,079'''
| percentage1 = '''89.82%'''

| image2 = 3x4.svg
| candidate2 = [[Samiha Khalil]]
| popular_vote2= 72,887
| party2 = Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine
| percentage2 = 10.18%

| title = [[President of the State of Palestine|President]]
| before_election = [[Yasser Arafat]]
| before_party = [[Fatah]]
| posttitle = President-elect
| after_election = [[Yasser Arafat]]
| after_party = [[Fatah]]

| module = {{Infobox legislative election
| embed = yes
| election_name = Parliamentary election

| next_election = [[2006 Palestinian legislative election|2006]]
| seats_for_election = All 88 seats in the [[Palestinian Legislative Council]]
| majority_seats = 45
| first_election = yes

| leader1 = [[Yasser Arafat]]
| party1 = Fatah
| percentage1 = 30.90
| seats1 = 50

| leader2 = 
| party2 = [[National Democratic Coalition (Palestine)|NDC]]
| color2 =
| percentage2 = 2.25
| seats2 = 1

| leader3 = [[Yasser Abed Rabbo]]
| party3 = [[Palestinian Democratic Union|FIDA]]
| percentage3 = 2.04
| color3 = #008B4C
| seats3 = 1

| leader4 =
| party4 = [[Liberty & Independence Bloc|LIB]]
| color4 = 
| percentage4 = 1.64
| seats4 = 1

| leader5 = –
| party5 = Independents
| percentage5 = 57.51
| seats5 = 35

}}}}}}{{Politics of Palestine}}

General elections were held for the first time in the [[Palestinian territories]] on 20 January 1996 to elect the [[President of the Palestinian National Authority|President]] of the [[Palestinian National Authority]] (PNA) and members of the [[Palestinian Legislative Council]] (PLC), the legislative arm of the PNA. They took place in the [[West Bank]], the [[Gaza Strip]], and [[East Jerusalem]]. A new [[Palestinian Government of 1996|government]] was formed following the elections, headed by President [[Yasser Arafat]].

==Background==
There were no strong conventional political parties in place before the election. The results were dominated by [[Fatah]], the strongest movement within the [[Palestine Liberation Organization]], which was headed by [[Yassir Arafat|Yasser Arafat]]. The [[Islamist]] [[Hamas]], Fatah's main rival, refused to participate in the election; they felt that doing so would lend legitimacy to the PNA, which was created out of what they called unacceptable negotiations and compromises with [[Israel]]. Independent international observers reported the elections to have been free and fair; however, boycotts by Hamas and opposition movements limited voter choices.

==Opinion polls==
===Presidential===
{| class=wikitable style="text-align:center;font-size:85%;line-height:13px"
!rowspan="2"| Date
!rowspan="2"| Pollster
!rowspan="2"| Sample<br />size
! style="width:35px;"| [[Yasser Arafat|Arafat]]<br>[[Fatah]]
! style="width:35px;"| [[Ahmed Yassin]]<br>[[Hamas]]
! style="width:35px;"| [[George Habash]]<br>[[Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine|PFLP]]
! style="width:35px;"| [[Haidar Abdel-Shafi]]
! style="width:35px;"| Faisal Husseni
! style="width:35px;"| [[Hanan Ashrawi]]
! style="width:35px;"| [[Nabil Shaath]]<br>[[Fatah]]
! style="width:35px;"| [[Mahmoud al-Zahar]]<br>[[Hamas]]
! style="width:35px;" rowspan="2"| Others
! style="width:35px;" rowspan="2"| No opinion
! style="width:35px;" rowspan="2"| Against all
|-
! style="background:{{party color|Fatah}};"|
! style="background:{{party color|Hamas}};"|
! style="background:{{party color|Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine}};"|
! style="background:grey;"|
! style="background:grey;"|
! style="background:grey;"|
! style="background:{{party color|Fatah}};"|
! style="background:{{party color|Hamas}};"|
|-
| 11 - 21 January 1996
| [http://www.jmcc.org/documents/12_January_1996.doc JMCC]
| 1,199
| style="background:{{party color|Fatah}}"| '''41%'''
| 3.2%
| 0.9%
| 7.2%
| 1.3%
| 3%
| 1%
| 1%
| 13.2%
| 16.8%
| 11.4%
|-
| 6 - 7 October 1995
| [http://www.jmcc.org/documents/10_October_1995.doc JMCC]
| 1,318
| style="background:{{party color|Fatah}}"| '''36.8%'''
| 5.5%
| 3.4%
| 4.6%
| 2.1%
| 2.4%
| 0.9%
| 0.2%
| 10.3%
| 17.7%
| 16.1%
|}
===Legislative===
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center;font-size:85%;line-height:13px"
!rowspan="2"| Date
!rowspan="2"| Pollster
!rowspan="2"| Sample<br />size
! style="width:35px;"| [[Fatah]]
! style="width:35px;"| [[Hamas]]
! style="width:35px;"| [[Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine|PFLP]]
! style="width:35px;"| [[Islamic Jihad Movement in Palestine|Islamic Jihad Movement]]
! style="width:35px;"| [[Palestinian People's Party|PPP]]
! style="width:35px;"| [[Palestinian Democratic Union|FIDA]]
! style="width:35px;"| [[DFLP]]
! style="width:35px;"| [[Palestine Liberation Organization|PLO]]
! style="width:35px;"| Other Islamic parties
! style="width:35px;" rowspan="2"| Others
! style="width:35px;" rowspan="2"| No opinion
! style="width:35px;" rowspan="2"| Against all
|-
! style="background:{{party color|Fatah}};"|
! style="background:{{party color|Hamas}};"|
! style="background:{{party color|Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine}};"|
! style="background:black;"|
! style="background:{{party color|Palestinian People's Party}};"|
! style="background:#008B4C;"|
! style="background:{{party color|Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine}};"|
! style="background:{{party color|Palestine Liberation Organization}};"|
! style="background:green;"|
|-
| 11 - 21 January 1996
| [http://www.jmcc.org/documents/12_January_1996.doc JMCC]
| 1,199
| style="background:{{party color|Fatah}}"| '''38.9%'''
| 12.3%
| 2.3%
| 1.4%
| 1.8%
| 0.9%
| 0.6%
| -
| 1.9%
| 1%
| 21.8%
| 17.1%
|-
| 6 - 7 October 1995
| [http://www.jmcc.org/documents/10_October_1995.doc JMCC]
| 1,318
| style="background:{{party color|Fatah}}"| '''41.3%'''
| 10.7%
| 3.6%
| 2.4%
| 1%
| 0.5%
| 0.5%
| 0.2%
| 0.9%
| -
| 17.8%
| 20.9%
|}

==Conduct==
Despite considerable Israeli obstruction,<ref>[[Nigel Parsons]] (2005), ''The Politics of the Palestinian Authority'',  pp.200-201</ref> the [[Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics|PCBS]] was able to arrange the necessary voter registration. Obstructions included long delays in providing maps and necessary information, and insistence on Hebrew-only documents; in Gaza, six tons of voter registration cards were held up at the [[Erez crossing]], and eventually they had to be "passed by hand over the concrete barriers that surround the checkpoint".<gallery mode="packed" heights="180">
File:Palestinians wait in line to cast their vote at the first Palestinian general election in Gaza in January 1996. The election was held under international supervision in January.jpg|Palestinians waiting in line to cast their vote.
File:January 1996 was the date for the first Palestinian general election. This photo shows a member of the election committee in the Gaza Strip.jpg|A member of the election committee in the Gaza Strip.
File:Palestinians at an election post practicing their rights at the first Palestinian general election. The election was held under international supervision in January.jpg|People voting.
File:International observers for the Palestinian national election at an election post in Gaza Strip.jpg|International observers at an election post in the Gaza Strip.
</gallery>

==Results==
===President===
The president was elected by a simple popular vote.  The results of the election were considered a foregone conclusion by most observers, due to Arafat's longtime dominance of the Palestinian political scene (he had been PNA president since its creation and head of the PLO for decades before that) and the high regard he was held in by most Palestinians. His only opponent, female politician [[Samiha Khalil]], was largely considered a prop.<ref>{{Cite book | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=NDYnBcMhYT4C&q=arafat+was+elected+the+same+way+stalin+was&pg=PA349 |title = Peace, They Say: A History of the Nobel Peace Prize, the Most Famous and Controversial Prize in the World|isbn = 9781594035999|last1 = Nordlinger|first1 = Jay|date = 2012-03-20}}</ref> Arafat won the election with 88.2 percent of the vote to Khalil's 11.5 percent.
<ref name=elections1995>Central Elections Commission (CEC), [http://www.elections.ps/Portals/0/pdf/Resultselection1996.pdf ''Results of first General election, 1996'']. [https://www.elections.ps/tabid/813/language/en-US/Default.aspx Here available] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180202172833/http://www.elections.ps/tabid/813/language/en-US/Default.aspx |date=2018-02-02 }}</ref>

{{Election results
|cand1=[[Yasser Arafat]]|party1=[[Fatah]]|votes1=643079
|cand2=[[Samiha Khalil]]|party2=[[Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine]]|votes2=72887
|invalid=20859
|electorate=1028280
|source=[https://web.archive.org/web/20220704230540/http://jmcc.org/documents/JMCCPalestinian_council.pdf JMCC]
}}

===Legislative Council===
The legislative election saw 88 PLC members elected from multi-member constituencies, with the number of representatives from each constituency determined by population. 51 seats were allocated to the West Bank and 37 to the Gaza Strip. Some seats were set aside for the [[Palestinian Christians|Christian]] and [[Samaritan]] communities. Of the 25 female candidates, five won seats; [[Hanan Ashrawi]], [[Dalal Salameh]], [[Jamila Saidam]], [[Rawya Shawa]] and [[Intissar al-Wazir]].

{{Election results
|party1=[[Fatah]]|votes1=1085593|seats1=50
|party2=[[Palestinian People's Party]]|votes2=102830|seats2=0
|party3=[[National Democratic Coalition (Palestine)|National Democratic Coalition]]|votes3=79058|seats3=1
|party4=[[Palestinian Democratic Union]]|votes4=71672|seats4=1|color4=#008B4C
|party5=[[Liberty & Independence Bloc]]|votes5=57516|seats5=1
|party6=[[Palestinian Popular Struggle Front]]|votes6=26034|seats6=0|color6=#CB0000
|party7=[[Arab Liberation Front]]|votes7=22810|seats7=0|color7=#008000
|party8=Islamic Struggle Movement|votes8=12285|seats8=0
|party9=[[Islamic Jihad Movement in Palestine|Islamic Jihad Movement]]|votes9=8391|seats9=0|color9=black
|party10=National Democratic Movement|votes10=6831|seats10=0
|party11=Future Bloc|votes11=6584|seats11=0
|party12=[[Palestinian Liberation Front]]|votes12=3919|seats12=0|color12=#D50407
|party13=National Movement for Change|votes13=2658|seats13=0
|party14=Palestinian National Coalition|votes14=2635|seats14=0
|party15=[[Ba'ath Party (Syrian-dominated faction)|Ba'ath Party]]|votes15=2230|seats15=0
|party16=Progressive National Bloc|votes16=1707|seats16=0
|party17=Independents|votes17=2020213|seats17=35
|electorate=1028280
|source=[https://web.archive.org/web/20220704230540/http://jmcc.org/documents/JMCCPalestinian_council.pdf JMCC]
}}

==Analysis==
Elections in the [[Palestinian territories|OPT]] are held to exercise the Palestinian right to self-determination in connection with their right to establish their own state, but are held within the context of the Israeli occupation.<ref>UN General Assembly, [https://unispal.un.org/UNISPAL.NSF/0/A2C2938216B39DE485256EA70070C849 ''Resolution 58/292. Status of the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem''] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120806133025/http://unispal.un.org/UNISPAL.NSF/0/A2C2938216B39DE485256EA70070C849 |date=2012-08-06 }}. 17 mei 2004 (doc.nr. A/RES/58/292).</ref> They are held in the framework of the [[Oslo Accords]], meaning that the power of the PNA was (and is) limited to matters such as culture, education, ID cards and the distribution of the land and water.

A controversial claim has been made, that changes of the political reality, including elections and the formation of new political entities under occupation are, like the Oslo Accords themselves, contrary to the Geneva Conventions and thus illegal. This argument is generally not accepted, as the Accords were meant as a temporary stepping stone to Palestinian self-determination.<ref>International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), [http://www.icrc.org/ihl.nsf/COM/380-600054?OpenDocument ''Convention (IV) relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War. Geneva, 12 August 1949 – Commentary ARTICLE 47'']. 2005</ref>
Some view elections in the Palestinian Territories as little more than symbolic, given the limited power they grant.

Political freedom is limited in the Palestinian Territories; checkpoints and separation walls are already fit to hinder all social activities. The parliament cannot function, merely because free travel is not possible, especially between Gaza and West Bank. In addition to this, hostilities between Fatah and Hamas hinder the correct functioning of the parliament.

Moreover, PNA and parliament do not represent the Palestinian diaspora (to which the [[Palestine Liberation Organization|PLO]] is entitled).

===Gender===
A poll conducted on 19 April 1994 by the [[Palestinian Center for Policy and Survey Research]] with 2006 respondents found the majority of Palestinians (79%) supported the right of women to vote (86% of women and 76% of men). 63% (71% of women and 59% of men) showed a willingness to vote for a female candidate who was competent, while 21% (24% of men and 16% of women) indicated they would not vote for a woman because "a man is probably more qualified" and 11% (13% of men and 7% of women) said they did not support women running for elections.<ref name="cprs_poll_1994">{{cite web |title=Public Opinion Poll #8: Palestinian Elections, Participation of Women, and Other Related Issues, April 1994 |url=http://www.pcpsr.org/survey/cprspolls/94/poll8.html |website=pcpsr.org |publisher=[[Palestinian Center for Policy and Survey Research|Center for Palestine Research and Studies]]|access-date=19 November 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20011225115352/http://www.pcpsr.org/survey/cprspolls/94/poll8.html |archive-date=25 December 2001 |date=April 1994}}</ref>{{r|Moghadam_2007_Book|p=31}} Prior to the elections there were discussions of establishing a 30 percent electoral quota to ensure female representation, similar to the quota for Christians, though no quota was put in place. According to one poll 50% of the Palestinian public favored a quota for women.{{r|Moghadam_2007_Book|p=32}}

Of the 550 candidates, 28 (5%) were women. Five women were elected to the council (6% of 88 seats), two from the West Bank and three from Gaza. These were [[Hanan Ashrawi]] (Jerusalem, independent), [[Dalal Salameh]] (Nablus, Fatah), journalist [[Rawya Shawa]] (Gaza, independent), [[Jamila Saidam]] (Khan Younis, Fatah), and [[Intissar al-Wazir]]. A sixth candidate, [[Zahira Kamal]] (Jerusalem, [[Palestinian Democratic Union|Fida]]), lost by 104 votes out of 32,316 cast in the Jerusalem constituency.<ref name="Moghadam_2007_Book">{{cite book|author=[[Valentine Moghadam]]|title=From Patriarchy to Empowerment: Women's Participation, Movements, and Rights in the Middle East, North Africa, and South Asia|date=2007|publisher=Syracuse University Press|isbn=9780815631118|page=31-35|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=iKsSEulnPTsC&pg=PA32|language=en}}</ref>

== Aftermath ==
The 1996 elections took place in a moment of optimism in the [[Israeli–Palestinian peace process]]; many Palestinians believed that the government they were electing would be the first of an independent [[Palestinian state]]. In the ensuing months and years however, Israelis and Palestinians failed to resolve their differences and come to a final status agreement; an upswing in violence meant that the [[Israeli–Palestinian conflict]] would continue. As a result of this instability, [[2006 Palestinian legislative election|new elections]] were not held until nearly a decade later.

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
*[http://www.elections.ps/tabid/813/language/en-US/Default.aspx Palestinian Central Elections Commission]

{{Palestinian elections}}

[[Category:1996 elections in Palestine|General election]]
[[Category:1996 elections in Asia|Palestine]]
[[Category:Elections in the Palestinian National Authority]]
[[Category:Election and referendum articles with incomplete results]]