Hamas-backed bloc wins at Birzeit student university elections
The Hamas-backed bloc with 5,060 votes won 28 seats, while the Fatah-backed bloc with 3,379 votes won only 18 seats.
Five blocs contested 51 seats, while voter turnout was 78.1%.
Students witnessed an intense debate among rival bloc representatives the previous day, with the policies and programs of both sides being criticized.
The Islamic bloc has led the student council in recent years.
Their Fatah-backed rivals say they are paying the price for the PA’s mistakes in terms of corruption, nepotism and security coordination with Israel and often losing elections.
The day before the vote, seven high-ranking student members of the Islamic bloc were arrested by an undercover Israeli unit, which generated sympathy for the group and translated into votes, experts told Arab News.
Ghassan Al-Khatib, vice president of the university, said the student council vote is an indicator of Palestinian public opinion and political balance in Palestinian society “because of the credibility, integrity and democracy in the Birzeit elections” .
Mohammed Daraghmeh, a senior Palestinian writer, told Arab News that Birzeit students are not influenced by interests or jobs, so the electoral process takes place “in a democratic atmosphere and with great integrity”.
He added: “If Hamas wins, the road is favorable and biased. If Fatah wins, it means the road is with it ”.
Daraghmeh said both Fatah and Hamas are making great efforts to win student support.
The election “helps Hamas to strengthen its political discourse and shows that Palestinian public opinion in the West Bank supports its path and its political line,” he said.
Meanwhile, Fatah “wants to defend the legitimacy of the Palestinian political system in light of its inability to organize Palestinian general elections”.
Birzeit elections are held every two years, with around 15,000 students voting for 51 seats. There were no votes in 2021 due to the coronavirus pandemic.
The secretariat of the board’s administrative body is made up of 13 members.
Birzeit was founded in 1973 as a public university and is the only academic institution in the West Bank that allows Hamas to practice its activities and politics without interference from Israel or the Palestinian Authority.
A number of prominent Palestinian leaders have graduated from the university, which offers 36 undergraduate and 13 master’s programs, and employs 500 teachers.
West Bank students and several hundred Palestinians living in Israel study there.
Basem Naim, a prominent Hamas leader in the Gaza Strip, told Arab News that the political group sees student votes as “an essential indicator” because it highlights the direction of future generations.
“The Birzeit University elections are an essential platform for Hamas because most Palestinian leaders are college graduates. Therefore, their strength today indicates the type of future leaders of the Palestinian people in all sectors and fields,” he said.
