It is vital for U.S. national security to continue democratic assistance to the Palestinian Authority despite Hamas’ landslide victory in January, said Jarrett Blanc, IFES’ chief of party in the West Bank and Gaza. “Cutting away democracy assistance deprives Palestinians of the ability to moderate the policies of their government,” he said in a presentation February 28 in Washington. The international community should continue funding the development of a probing press, opposition parties and lobbying groups that can advocate for change in the Palestinian territories. Blanc pointed out that 55 percent of Palestinians actually voted for parties other than Hamas, but that the ruling Fatah party spread its support among too many candidates. This allowed Hamas to take advantage of a balloting system called “bloc voting” to win an overwhelming number of votes.