Elections - Palestinian Style

the Palestinian flag

You would think that the abundant presence of the Palestinian National Security Forces would have clued me in that something unique was going in the West Bank. After all, I don't usually have to walk by men with machine guns on my way to the bakery. Perhaps I should have made a mental note that the streets were more crowded than usual or that the locals seemed more animated. I hadn't really been paying attention to anything but my list of errands to complete. I was clueless until, errands done, I began meandering around the streets of Beit Sahour, exploring this little city just east of Bethlehem. It was then that I began to notice groups of Palestinians happily walking down the street, arm and arm. There were flags being flown from business, attached to cars, hanging from windows. Then I remembered. Today was election day!

It has been well over 6 years since municipal elections were held in the West Bank. Usually convened every 4 years, these elections have been cancelled and postponed several times due to the political challenges between the Fatah government in the West Bank and the Hamas powers in Gaza. While a national election is long overdue (and who knows when that will be scheduled), today's voters were casting ballots for those who manage their local municipalities.

children on the street with flags

In the Palestinian Territories, one votes not for individual candidates but for a slate of candidates, a group that has agreed to serve cooperatively together. Since I've been here, I seen their policial signs posted around town, their public forums in the evenings, and even had two people knock on my door to ask for my vote! (At least that's what I thought they were doing. Either that or they were Jehovah's Witnesses - not.) An encouragement to me was seeing that in each of the groups running for office, there was at least one woman on every slate. In the town of Hebron, the West Bank's largest city, for the first time ever, one group was entirely made up of women!

Turns out my meandering got me caught up in a traffic jam right outside the voting area, across the street from Beit Sahour's version of city hall. I can't begin to describe the palpable joy that was emanating from the crowd. It was like a block party without the alcohol. People were talking to one another, slapping each other on the back, and hugging each others' children.

When I got home, I began trolling the internet to see what was being said about the elections here. Although over half a million people are eligible to vote, they expect lower than normal turn out due to voter apathy and the boycott by Hamas. Of course, that may be true. But today in Beit Sahour, I saw a different story, one where many people were exercising their right to make a difference. To a people living under Israeli occupation, this was a day that gave them a deeper sense of self-determination and freedom. It certainly was a day for celebration. I'm glad I was there to witness it.

inked finger after voting