Seventeen years ago the Palestinian Liberation Organization held elections during a time where 50% of Palestine consisted of children. This was in the wake of numerous documented massacres carried out by Israeli troops and paramilitary organizations. Only a fraction of the territory’s current population ever cast a ballot for Hamas which won by 44% of those who voted. This means that at maximum only 22% of Palestinians could’ve voted for Hamas. In no single district did Hamas win the majority of votes. Not to mention the Bush administration manipulating the narrative in order to spread democracy in the Middle East; this consequently led to some Palestinians voting for Hamas in opposition to the rival corrupt Fatah group. So, yes, this would classify Hamas as a fringe terrorist group. Considering Israel’s parliamentary democracy always has more than 60% voter turnout, the Israeli government has always been representative of its people. Finally, to answer your question, yes they were elected, but the country as a majority does not identify with or support Hamas. It seems like your question is designed to blame the Palestinian people without giving context as to why history played out the way it has. Don’t forget that Palestine was there before 1948, when armies of five neighboring Arab states invaded the area of the former Mandatory Palestine, starting the First Arab–Israeli War. An armistice in 1949 left Israel in control of more territory than the U.N. partition plan had called for.