RAMALLAH, West Bank - The Fatah party of Palestinian leader Mahmud Abbas led the radical Islamic movement Hamas in a tally of forecast victories in some of Thursday's municipal elections, exit polls showed.
The Palestinian Center for Policy and Survey Research predicted results in 14 of the 84 councils being chosen in the West Bank and Gaza Strip.
Of four councils out of the eight being chosen in Hamas's Gaza Strip stronghold, the PCRS said exit polls suggested that Fatah would carry three councils and Hamas one.
Of 10 councils in the West Bank, it said the polls showed Fatah winning four councils, Hamas three, leftist groups two and independents one.
Polls closed at 7:00 pm (1600 GMT), though election officials said those still standing in line at the time would be allowed to vote.
Preliminary figures released as the polls closed put turnout at 80 percent in the Gaza Strip and 70 percent in the West Bank.
More than 400,000 people were entitled to vote in an election seen as a litmus test of the overall popularity of Hamas, which first entered the democratic process last December.
Officials said vote counting would begin as soon as the balloting ended, with preliminary results expected from early Friday and final results on Sunday.
05/05/2005 18:02 GMT