The campaigning period for the Kurdistan Region’s parliamentary elections ran from September 25 to October 15, during which thousands of posters of candidates filled the Region’s streets. Following the vote, the electoral commission said the candidates must remove their posters within 30 days.
“The 30-day deadline set by the commission for the removal of posters has ended ... the commission’s monitoring committees, in coordination with municipal teams, will patrol the cities and towns across the Kurdistan Region. Any posters remaining in streets and public places will be recorded,” Zana Osman, the head of the media and communications office of Kurdistan Region’s elections at the Iraqi Independent High Electoral Commission (IHEC) told Rudaw.
If a poster is observed during the monitoring pocess, a fine will be imposed on the candidate.
“After documenting all the remaining posters, the information will be sent to the commission's council in a written report. The council will then decide, based on the number and locations of the remaining posters, the fines to impose on candidates and parties. The fines will range from 250,000 [about $170] to 2 million [about $1,330] Iraqi dinars,” Khalid Abbas, the head of IHEC’s Duhok office told Rudaw.
Some 1,191 candidates vied for a spot in the 100-seat legislature, in the October 20 vote, which resulted in a consolidation of power for the ruling Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP), which won 39 seats, followed by its government ally and political rival the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) with 32 seats. The opposition New Generation Movement took third place with 15 seats.
Opposition parties Kurdistan Justice Group (Komal), the Kurdistan Islamic Union (KIU), the People’s Front (Baray Gal), and the National Stance Movement (Halwest) have denounced the election results. They alleged fraud and voter manipulation, and questioned the reliability of the voting machines.
IHCE on Sunday approved the results of the elections, and Kurdistan Region President Nechirvan Barzani is set to issue a presidential decree “soon” calling for the first session of the parliament, according to Dilshad Shahab, spokesperson for the Kurdistan Region Presidency.
