More than 80 percent of Palestinians believe there is corruption in the Palestinian Authority, but Fatah, the ruling faction in the West Bank, would still win if new elections were held today, according to a public opinion poll published Tuesday.

The poll, which was conducted by the Jerusalem Media & Communications Center, included 1188 Palestinians who were interviewed face-to-face in the West Bank and Gaza Strip last week. The poll has a margin of error of 3%.

Fatah and Hamas are hoping to hold new presidential and parliamentary elections within the next two to three months.

On Monday, Hamas announced that it has agreed to allow the Palestinian Central Elections Committee to start registering voters in the Gaza Strip. The process will last for six weeks after which the vote would be held in the Palestinian territories.

The poll showed that 51% of Palestinians support holding presidential and parliamentary elections, but only if reconciliation is reached between Hamas and Fatah.

Forty-two percent of respondents said they would vote for Fatah, while 19% said they would choose Hamas.

However, the poll showed that nearly half of the Palestinians are convinced that Fatah has failed to implement reforms and combat corruption.

About 50% of Palestinians said they would vote for jailed Fatah leader Marwan Barghouti when and if he decides to participate in the presidential election. Hamas leader Khaled Mashaal got only 20% of support, according to the results of the poll.

Still, nearly half of the respondents said they did not believe that Hamas and Fatah would be able to overcome their differences and agree on reconciliation.

Palestinians’ confidence in the Palestinian Authority dropped from 67% last November to 60% today, the poll showed. Still, more than 65% of respondents said they were opposed to dissolving the PA.

According to the survey, 50% of respondents still believe in the two- state solution as opposed to 25% who favor a one state solution.

Approximately 80% of Palestinians said they preferred “peaceful resistance” against Israel compared to 55% who support the armed struggle. (© 1995-2011, The Jerusalem Post 05/30/12)