ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) leader Bafel Talabani on Wednesday called on his rival political leaders to participate in a public debate as campaigning heats up ahead of the Kurdistan Region's parliamentary election. “Let us debate,” he said, addressing Masrour Barzani, leadership member of the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) and prime minister of the Kurdistan Region. Talabani also urged the leaders of multiple parties to join in a debate, saying it would boost voter turnout. He named Ali Bapir of the Kurdistan Justice Group (Komal), Salahadin Bahadin of the Kurdistan Islamic Union (KIU), New Generation Movement’s Shaswar Abdulwahid, and Kurdistan Social Democratic Party (KSDP) leader Mohammed Haji Mahmoud. “I challenge you,” he said in English. KDP member Peshawa Hawramani, who is the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) spokesperson, promptly responded on his personal Facebook account, saying the challenge “was not accepted.” The other party leaders have not immediately responded. Campaigning for the October 20 vote is in full swing. On Wednesday, Barzani held a campaign rally in Erbil where he focused on unity among the diverse communities in the Kurdistan Region. "Our slogan is one of unity. We want to be united with all sides, all the religions and nationalities that live in Kurdistan. Together we are beautiful. Together we are stronger," he added. Barzani said that this unity and the strength of the people and leadership of the Kurdistan Region is what led to the failure of attempts to weaken the region. The KDP has criticized as unconstitutional PUK efforts during last year’s budget negotiations to strengthen direct ties between the provinces and Baghdad. The KDP and PUK share power in the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG). In his speech at a rally in Halabja, Talabani criticized the government for failing to serve the people. He said that while the Kurdistan Region is resource-rich, its leadership has not sufficiently addressed the needs of the people and said that the PUK is the only party in Iraq working for the Kurdish people across all four parts of Kurdistan, referring to Kurdish areas in neighboring countries. "Assist us, gather votes, reconcile people… the PUK today [is here] to serve people," Talabani said. The Kurdistan Region last held parliamentary elections in 2018. This vote should have taken place in 2022, but was delayed multiple times because of factors including tensions between the Kurdistan Region’s political parties and interference from Baghdad. Official campaigning began last week and continues until October 15. Nearly 2.9 million people are eligible to vote. In the 2018 election, the KDP won 45 seats, the PUK secured 21, while the Change Movement (Gorran) took 12 seats, and smaller parties won fewer than ten seats. The KDP and PUK hold most of the cabinet positions in the current government. Of the 11 minority seats in the Kurdistan Region's parliament, Turkmen candidates won five, Assyrian, Chaldean, and Syriac Christians also secured five, and Armenians took one. In this election, just five seats are allocated for minorities - three for Christians and two for Turkmens.
