PALESTINIANS voted at the weekend in the first elections held in part of Gaza in more than two decades, while tens of thousands cast ballots in the Israeli-occupied West Bank.

The vote in Deir al-Balah in central Gaza was a largely symbolic pilot election, officials said, part of the Palestinian Authority’s effort to politically link the coastal enclave and the West Bank.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, who has been frozen out of US-led postwar plans for Gaza, hopes to establish an independent state in both territories.

Hamas did not field candidates in Deir al-Balah, which suffered damage in air strikes but was spared an Israeli ground invasion in more than two years of war. Over 70,000 people were eligible to elect local councillors.

Turnout was low and those who did cast ballots complained of an almost total absence of public services.

“I came to vote because I have a right to elect members to a municipal council so they can provide us with services,” said Ashraf Abu Dan in Deir al-Balah.

Election officials reported a preliminary 53.4 per cent overall turnout in the West Bank and 22.7 per cent in Deir al-Balah.

Results were expected last night after the Morning Star had gone to press.

The popularity of the Palestinian Authority has been weakened by corruption and autocratic rule, its failure to establish an independent state and a feud with Hamas.

Mr Abbas, aged 90, was elected to what was supposed to be a four-year term in 2005.

Though it has not held presidential or legislative elections since 2006, the Palestinian Authority promoted the local polls after enacting reforms last year in response to demands from international backers.

Central Election Commission chairman Rami Hamdallah said Israel had blocked the entry of materials such as ballot papers, ballot boxes and ink into Gaza. The commission repurposed materials instead, using wooden ballot boxes and ink from a vaccination drive last year.