Executive Summary where running for election is available. Even more, two lists of female candidates which contained no male candidates have run for elections. However, on the other hand, the number of lists running for elections dropped and the number of candidates dropped in 2017 compared to the elections held in 2012/2013. ICHR observed a remarkable improvement in the rate of local authorities which held elections compared to the previous years, especially 2012/2013, as the local authorities in which elections were held this year represented 49%, compared to 39% in 2012-2013. At the same time, the rate of authorities’ councils which won uncontested seats dropped from 61% in 2012/2013 to 51% in 2017. The Central Elections Commission (CEC) received 102 administrative appeals across the electoral process, which is far less than the number of administrative appeals received concerning the 2012/2013 elections which reached 149. The courts received 34 judicial appeals against the CEC’s decisions issued in 2017, which is far less than the number of judicial appeals filed against the 2012/2013 elections which reached 48. The court accepted 4 judicial appeals out of those filed in 2017 and it accepted 5 of the appeals filed in 2012/2013. More than one third of the citizens were denied their right to choose their representatives in the local councils in the West Bank following the decision rendered by the High Court of Justice on 3 October 2016 to hold the elections in the West Bank and suspend elections in the Gaza Strip to a later date to be determined. Accordingly, 61% of the citizens managed to practice their right to run for elections and to elect (West Bank citizens) while 39% of the Palestinian population was denied such right (Gaza Strip citizens). To ensure the right to political participation, ICHR believes that the official and party authorities in the West Bank and Gaza Strip should finalize a true, active, and honest reconciliation next year so that everybody is enabled to practice their right to choose their representatives on all levels; presidential, legislative, and local. Until a true political reconciliation is in place, the related parties in the West Bank and Gaza Strip should lift the political obstacles hindering the holding of local elections in Gaza Strip. Holding The Independent Commission for Human Rights (ICHR) 29