RAMALLAH, Apr 25: Palestinians in the West Bank and central Gaza voted Saturday in municipal elections, the first since the war in Gaza erupted, with low early turnout and a limited political field.
Nearly 1.5 million people are registered to vote in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, as well as 70,000 people in Gaza's Deir el-Balah area, according to the Ramallah-based Central Elections Commission.
Early AFP footage from Al-Bireh in the West Bank and Deir el-Balah showed voters trickling into the polling stations.
By late morning, voter turnout was strikingly low at 15 percent, rising to 24.53 percent by 1 pm (1000 GMT), the election commission said.
An AFP journalist reported near empty stations across parts of the West Bank, even as foreign diplomats made their rounds to observe the process.
Speaking to reporters, Election Commission chief Rami Hamdallah urged all voters to head to the ballot boxes, "given how important this is for our Palestinian people".
After voting in Al-Bireh, Khalid Eid said he hoped for change in council composition.
"We must see change every four years through elections... We can't change the situation but we hope to replace people... people who might be better and help develop the community," the 55-year-old told AFP.
Most electoral lists are aligned with President Mahmud Abbas's secular-nationalist Fatah movement or are composed of independents.
Hamas, Fatah's bitter rival and the ruling power in Gaza, is absent from the race.�"AFP
