Municipal elections in most countries are not a big deal. But the Jerusalem municipal elections are a big deal for Palestinians, who have boycotted every election held in the city since 1967. Ever since the Israelis occupied east Jerusalem and unilaterally declared that the city's two sides are now a “united city,” Palestinians have refused to field candidates or vote for the city council and mayor. This has resulted in Jewish Israelis continuously gaining every seat on the council of a city with between 250,000 to 350,000, depending on whether Palestinian Jerusalemites on the other side of the wall are included in the count.
On Oct. 8, the Arab affairs department of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) issued a statement calling on east Jerusalem residents not to vote in the elections scheduled for Oct. 22. The PLO said the municipality supports settlements in east Jerusalem and is turning it into a Jewish city, “which is a national and political issue and not an issue of providing services.”