Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas issued a presidential decree today, Friday, to conduct general elections in three phases, specifying the date for the upcoming legislative elections as May 22, 2021, and the presidential elections as July 31, 2021.
The legislative elections will be considered the first phase in the formation of the Palestinian National Council, to be completed by August 31, 2021, in accordance with the Palestinian National Liberation Organization's basic law and internal agreements in Palestine, "so that elections for the National Council can be held wherever possible," according to the Palestinian News Agency "Wafa." This decision followed a meeting between President Abbas and the Chairman of the Central Elections Commission, Hanaa Nasir, this evening at the Palestinian presidential headquarters in Ramallah. President Abbas directed the Elections Commission and all state apparatuses to begin launching a democratic electoral campaign in Jerusalem and all Palestinian governorates, and to initiate a national dialogue "focused on the mechanisms of this process."
