Mahmoud Abbas was elected president of the Palestinian Authority by a landslide, results showed yesterday, giving the pragmatist a mandate to resume peace talks with Israel - but also leaving him with the tough task of reining in powerful armed groups.
Israeli leaders welcomed Abbas' victory but said they will watch closely his efforts to subdue militants. Abbas could easily lose his political capital over a major bombing or shooting attack, and while most militant groups signaled they are willing to give him a chance, not all have signed on to a truce with Israel.
Many Palestinians have high expectations for Abbas, widely known as Abu Mazen.
"Today is the beginning of a new future," said Sami Radwan, 55, a restaurant owner in Gaza City. "Abu Mazen is the right choice. He is the one who can bring us peace, good business and security."
Abbas won 62.3 percent of the vote, according to final results announced by Hanna Nasser, head of the Central Election Commission.
His main challenger, independent Mustafa Barghouti, won 19.8 percent, while the remaining five candidates scored in the single digits. About 3.8 percent of the ballots were deemed invalid, and 3.2 percent were blank, Nasser told a news conference.
Nasser declined to give a turnout figure, citing confusion over the use of outdated residency records.
Questions about voter participation are a possible point of contention between Abbas' Fatah movement, which was pushing for a high turnout, and the Islamic militant group Hamas, which had called for a boycott.
In his acceptance speech, Abbas said he faces a difficult mission, but he reiterated that he would not go after militants. Instead, he said, he wants to "give our fugitives a life of dignity," referring to those wanted by Israel.
"I present this victory to the soul of Yasser Arafat and present it to our people and to our martyrs," Abbas added.
After exit polls predicted a sweeping Abbas victory, cheering supporters took to the streets of the West Bank and Gaza late Sunday. Gunmen fired in the air, motorists honked horns and members of Abbas' ruling Fatah movement, wearing checkered black-and-white headbands, danced in the streets.
Hamas, the largest opposition group, announced yesterday it will work with Abbas, despite misgivings about what it said were voting irregularities, including a decision to keep polls open two hours longer than planned. Hamas had called for a boycott of the election, but did not try to disrupt the vote.
A US observer team said in a statement that the Palestinians "have conducted a clean, open and fair election, largely unimpeded and without interference."
In Beijing, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Kong Quan said yesterday that China is happy with the election.
China respects the Palestinian's choice and sincerely hopes the newly elected leadership will help the Palestinian people reach their goal of founding their own country, Kong said.
In Washington, US President George W. Bush called the election a "historic" step toward a Palestinian state.
"The United States stands ready to help the Palestinian people realize their aspirations," Bush said. "The new Palestinian president and his Cabinet face critical tasks ahead, including fighting terrorism, combatting corruption, building reformed and democratic institutions and reviving the Palestinian economy."
In Israel, Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's Cabinet approved a new dovish coalition yesterday, another step toward a planned withdrawal from the Gaza Strip and four West Bank settlements.