President Barzani to discuss elections with Kurdish political parties

August 8, 2023
Rudaw Ā 

The meeting will take place on Wednesday, and will also be attended by The United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI) Special Representative Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert, Fawzi Hariri, the Kurdistan Region Presidency chief of staff, told Rudawā€™s Sangar Abdulrahman on Monday.

The Kurdistan Region parliamentary elections are set to occur on October 1, but the process has been hindered by disagreements between the Kurdish political parties over the Regionā€™s current commission and election laws, casting doubt on the likelihood of the vote to be held on time.

Hennis-PlasschaertĀ calledĀ for equalizing the Kurdistan Region’s electoral playing field ahead of elections scheduled for October 1 during a UN Security Council meeting in May, focusing on solutions that represent the interests of all residents of the Region.

Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) President Masoud Barzani and Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) leader Bafel TalabaniĀ heldĀ a meeting in Erbil on Thursday, discussing the latest developments in Iraqā€™s political climate, and hoping to unite Kurdish political forces against the challenges they face in Iraq and the Region.

The PUK and a number of other Kurdish political blocs have claimed that the electoral regulations are outdated and in need of amendment prior to Octoberā€™s vote, a suggestion opposed by KDP, arguing that amending the laws requires the agreement of all parliamentary blocs.

ā€œEven if all the parties reach an agreement today, we donā€™t believe the electoral commission will be able to organize it [the election] on October 10,ā€ Hemin Hawrami, deputy speaker of the Kurdistan Region parliament,Ā saidĀ in July.