Kurdish opposition warns fraud, intimidation to taint upcoming election
As the Iraq Kurdistan Region prepares to hold its parliamentary elections Sept. 30, the opposition is deeply concerned about voter fraud by the two ruling parties.
SULAIMANIYAH, Iraq — Iraqi Kurdistan's parliamentary elections will be held on Sept. 30. Early voting for the peshmerga and other security services will start Sept. 28.
The election was due to be held last November, but it was postponed by the parliament. The election will bring a new regional government in Kurdistan. In addition to the main two Kurdish parties, the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan and the Kurdistan Democratic Party, several small parties including Gorran and Kurdistan Islamic Group are participating in the election. The small parties fear large-scale fraud by the current government, which is shared by the two parties.
The Kurdistan Regional Government's election commission announced that six foreign nations will monitor the Kurdistan Region’s parliamentary election through their consulates, but the opposition parties still do not trust the government to hold the election fairly.
The mood is unusually subdued across the region and the start of campaigning was delayed by a week, as some political parties were trying to delay the vote. Campaigning kicked off on Sept. 11 and will continue until Sept. 28, but the shadow of concern over large-scale voter fraud, low turnout and armed conflicts has created a gloomy atmosphere among political parties and local citizens.
