Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas has amended the law governing elections to the Palestinian National Council , a move analysts say could reshape Palestinian political representation as the leadership prepares for long-delayed elections amid internal divisions and mounting international pressure.
Abbas on Sunday issued a decree amending the 2007 election law, expanding the Legislative Council from 132 to 200 seats, lowering the electoral threshold to 1%, and reducing the minimum age for candidates from 28 to 23.
The amendments also require electoral lists to include at least one woman for every three candidates and increase the minimum number of candidates on each list from 16 to 20.
The changes come as Abbas is expected to call Legislative Council elections to coincide with Palestinian National Council elections, currently scheduled for 1 November 2026.
Under the proposed framework, elected Legislative Council members would automatically become members of the Palestinian National Council, the parliament-in-exile of the Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO).
A Palestinian official, speaking on condition of anonymity, told The New Arab there was "clear and sustained European pressure" on the Palestinian leadership not to replace legislative and presidential elections with National Council elections alone.
The official said the Oslo framework remains the only internationally recognised legal basis for legislative elections, reinforcing the centrality of Palestinian Authority institutions in international diplomatic calculations.
Alongside the electoral amendments, Abbas ratified the Palestinian National Council electoral system after it was approved by the PLO Executive Committee, in a move presented as part of efforts to strengthen the organisation's institutions.
While the changes have been framed as measures to expand political participation and improve representation, analysts argue they reflect broader debates over the future of Palestinian governance, legitimacy and representation. More than electoral reform Akram Atallah, a Palestinian political analyst based in Gaza, told The New Arab that the amendments cannot be viewed as merely technical changes to election procedures.
"This is not just a technical election law change," he said. "The renewed focus on the Legislative Council rather than the National Council reflects international priorities that view reforming the Palestinian Authority as a path to stability, rather than redefining the role of the PLO."
Atallah said expanding the number of seats and lowering the age threshold could increase participation, but warned that the measures risk deepening political fragmentation in the absence of broader consensus.
Political analyst Ahed Ferwana said the amendments reflected both external pressure and uncertainty within the Palestinian political system.
"The leadership is trying to respond to competing demands without a unified strategic vision," he said, arguing that the shift back towards legislative elections exposed "a lack of consensus on the shape of the coming political phase".
Ferwana also pointed to what he described as a contradiction within the reforms.
While the amendments broaden participation through quotas and lower electoral thresholds, they simultaneously weaken political discipline within electoral lists, he argued.
"This could produce a highly representative parliament in numerical terms, but one that is politically fragmented and lacking coherent blocs capable of governing." Questions over representation One of the most contentious changes is the reduction of the electoral threshold from 2% to 1% percent, potentially enabling a greater number of smaller parties and independent lists to gain representation.
Atallah warned that the move could weaken established political parties.
"Instead of strengthening political institutions, it may fragment them further, opening the door to family, local or narrow factional representation," he said.
Ferwana argued that the lower threshold could help new political forces emerge, while also making it harder to form stable governing majorities.
Gaza-based analyst Mustafa Ibrahim said the significance of the reforms cannot be separated from the broader political context.
"In the absence of elections for many years, and amid deep territorial and political division between the West Bank and Gaza, any reform will remain limited in its practical impact," he told The New Arab. Ibrahim also linked the changes to growing international influence over Palestinian political decision-making.
"This reality weakens public confidence in the electoral process itself," he said.
The amendments have also prompted questions about the relationship between the Palestinian Authority and the PLO.
Notably, the new text does not explicitly require candidates or electoral lists to commit to the PLO's political programme, a departure from previous legislative frameworks.
Analysts say the omission raises broader questions about how political legitimacy, representation and national leadership will be defined in future elections.