ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Nearly 2,000 observers from consulates and international organizations have registered to oversee the Kurdistan Region’s parliamentary elections on Sunday, an Iraqi electoral body official said. “Today at the end of the workday, the registration of international observers has ended, and as of today, 276 observers from 13 embassies will be present on election day,” Imad Jamil, the head of Iraq’s Independent Electoral High Commission’s (IHEC) media team, told Rudaw on Tuesday. Jamil noted that hundreds of observers from international organizations will be present on the day of the vote. “The United Nations will have 25 observers, the European Union will have three observers, civil organizations will have 47 observers, and election observation organizations will have 1,604 observers present on election day,” he said. Over 30 international media organizations and more than 100 Arab and international journalists are set to cover the election day. The Kurdistan Region will hold parliamentary elections on Sunday, with special voting on Friday. The campaigning period for the election ended at midnight on Wednesday. The vote was originally scheduled for October 2022, but it was postponed multiple times due to disputes between the political parties over the Region’s election law and the electoral commission. There are 1,191 candidates vying for the 100-seat Kurdistan parliament - 823 men and 368 women - including 38 candidates for five minority quota seats. The vote is set to take place on October 20.
