As the clock ticks down toward the upcoming presidential and parliamentary elections in Iraqi Kurdistan, which enjoys near total independence from the central Iraqi government, the names of candidates for the post of provincial president have yet to be announced. Conjecture abounds, though, that competition will be fierce, especially now that the name of Nawshirwan Mustafa, the leader of the opposition Movement for Change, has been proposed to compete against the incumbent, Massoud Barzani.

The province is thus readying itself to hold parliamentary and presidential elections on Sept. 21 this year. Iraqi Kurdistan’s political arena is also witnessing an intense political tug of war; whereby the opposition (which includes the Movement for Change led by Mustafa, who in 2008 defected from the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan headed by Iraqi President Jalal Talabani; the Kurdistan Islamic Union and al-Jama'a al-Islamiyya — the Islamic Association) faces off against the two main parties that currently rule the province, namely the Kurdistan Democratic Party, led by the province’s president, Massoud Barzani, and Talabani’s party.

It would seem that the aforementioned opposition already has concerns that Barzani and Talabani’s parties might be able to find a legal loophole that would allow Barzani’s to extend his time in office for yet another term, and have decided to prepare for that eventuality by submitting the candidature of a strong opponent to Barzani this time around, following the fiasco of 2009 when no serious opponent was fielded.

Article 3 of the law governing the province’s presidency clearly states that the province’s presidency shall be limited to four years, with re-election possible for an additional term. Barzani has already served for two consecutive terms, but members of his party claim that this article will be void once the current contentious constitution, which has yet to be ratified through a referendum, is finally amended.