Gaza voters want jobs and security as Palestinian elections approach

What Happened

Ahead of Palestinian legislative elections scheduled for November 28 — the first since 2006 — Gaza voters interviewed in Deir el-Balah are prioritising jobs, security, housing, education and healthcare. Ahmad Mohsen, a 24-year-old nursing graduate who volunteered at Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital before lack of pay forced him into selling prepaid internet cards, said he wants a stable job and security. Ghassan Marwan, a 53-year-old former goldsmith who voted in 2006 for an independent list headed by Mustafa Barghouti, lost his home and factory in January 2024 and said interests have shifted to daily survival and reconstruction. The article reports unemployment in Gaza at about 80 percent and says the war has killed more than 74,000 Palestinians without naming a source. The Palestinian Central Elections Commission estimates about 1.24 million Palestinians in Gaza will be eligible to vote and is preparing the vote in the occupied West Bank, occupied East Jerusalem and Gaza; its Gaza regional director Jamil al-Khalidi says the process faces logistical and security challenges from destruction and displacement, and the commission has contingency plans to produce election materials locally in case Israel restricts entry of supplies.

Key Actors

Why It Matters

The November 28 vote would be the first Palestinian legislative election since Hamas won the 2006 polls, and it comes amid massive destruction and displacement in Gaza following the war. The electorate's focus on basic survival and reconstruction rather than factional politics signals a potential shift in Palestinian political legitimacy and raises questions about whether any future government can deliver reconstruction and security under the October 2025 ceasefire framework and ongoing Israeli access restrictions.

Watch For

Monitor whether the election proceeds on November 28 given logistical and security challenges, whether Israel allows entry of election materials into Gaza, and whether Israeli forces withdraw from areas east of Salah al-Din Street as stipulated in the October 2025 ceasefire agreement. Also watch for voter registration updates, any delay or cancellation by the Palestinian Central Elections Commission, and formal positions from Hamas and the Palestinian Authority on participating in the vote.