What is behind the postponement of Palestinian elections and what happens next?

Palestinian authorities are preparing to delay planned parliamentary and presidential elections, dealing another blow to democratic processes in the occupied territories, according to a report by The National.

President Mahmoud Abbas had pledged that legislative elections would take place in November 2026, followed by a presidential vote the following year, amid mounting diplomatic pressure to implement institutional reforms. However, multiple political sources told the UAE-based publication that the voting will be put on hold once again, echoing the 2021 cancellation of parliamentary polls.

The delay comes as the Palestinian Authority contends with collapsing institutions, ongoing war, and expanding Israeli occupation. Over the course of the three-year conflict in Gaza, Israeli military operations have killed 70,000 Palestinians and occupied more than half of the strip, while settler violence and detentions have escalated across the West Bank.

Abbas, now 90, was elected to a four-year presidential term in 2005 and has governed by decree for roughly 17 years without a renewed mandate. Palestine's parliament has been defunct since 2007, leaving Abbas to rule through executive decrees rather than legislation passed by an elected assembly. Legal analysts and critics, including former Palestine Liberation Organisation spokeswoman Diana Buttu, have described the governance model as authoritarian, warning of deep uncertainty over who will succeed the long-serving leader.

Political analysts attribute the latest decision to internal fragmentation within Abbas's ruling Fatah party alongside rising support for opposition coalitions. An August survey conducted by the Palestinian Centre for Policy and Survey Research showed that 79 percent of the 1,270 participants wanted Abbas to step down, with only 14 percent indicating they would support him if prominent rivals such as Marwan Barghouti and Hamas politburo chief Khalil Al Hayya appeared on the ballot.

Internal Fatah elections for its Central Committee faced sharp accusations of irregularities after established figures were sidelined and Abbas's son, Yasser, gained a seat. Discontent within the faction has been compounded by external alliances. Figures such as Mohammad Dahlan, leader of the breakaway Democratic Reform Party, have engaged in discussions with Hamas leadership in Cairo, raising fears within the presidency of an insurmountable electoral coalition combining Hamas, Islamic Jihad, and Fatah dissidents.

Representatives from various factions noted that official justifications for halting the process are likely to cite the need for preliminary national reconciliation talks in Egypt.

International donors, particularly European nations that have conditioned financial backing on political reforms, are expected to scrutinise the delay. Observers note that any postponement issued through a formal presidential decree may attempt to establish a revised timetable to soften backlash from foreign partners.