Defying predictions from participants and observers, the final election results for the Palestinian Legislative Council gave Hamas 74 seats compared to 45 for Fatah. Hamas's landslide victory in the January 25 elections for the 132-seat PLC is a turning point for politics in both Palestine and the broader Middle East. Arguably for the first time since the establishment of Israel in 1948, an official administrative power in the West Bank and Gaza Strip has strong popular support and is not directly beholden to Israeli or US interests. Analysis by Adam Hanieh.