The youth sector at the Palestinian NGOs Network has appealed President Mahmoud Abbas and the Palestinian factions to lower the age limit to run for Legislative Council and Presidential elections to ensure the political participation of youth.

In that context, PNGO youth sector valued the presidential decree calling for the legislative, presidential, and National Council elections, which, in their perspective, resembles a real opportunity to empower democratic existence and achieve national reconciliation.

In addition, the sector expressed hope the success of the anticipated national dialogue in Cairo and for all elections obstacles to be removed as well as the successful of the electoral process in a manner that guarantees justice, transparency, and monitoring.

The sector continued to stress the need to involve young people in the democratic process by lowering the age limit to 23 years, which is similar to the age for running for the National Council. This is deemed vital because not changing the limit will most certainly deprive hundreds of thousands of young people of participation in the elections.

Moreover, the youth sector indicated that Palestinians born in recent decades have suffered from the political division, siege and Israeli aggression more. Due to this reason, the sector calls for youth representation in electoral lists based on the importance of its role in society. People who are younger than 40 years old constitute 63% of the total electoral votes; thus, a real representation is needed to guarantee their forefront and pioneering role in serving the society, especially after more than 15 years of marginalization, exclusion, and lack of access to their basic rights.

Finally, the youth sector in PNGO demanded that young people unite themselves and be aware of their right to run and participate in the electoral process and refuse to marginalize them through lowering the age of candidacy and ensuring their representation on the electoral lists.