Massoud Barzani stresses addressing all violations in the region's election file

Shafaq News / The Kurdistan Democratic Party’s (KDP) leader stressed, on Monday, the importance of addressing all technical, constitutional, and legal obstacles regarding the electoral process in the Kurdistan Region (KRI), highlighting the KDP's support for conducting fair elections.

According to a statement from Barzani’s media office, “he received at Saladin Resort, Jaco Beerends, Consul General of the Netherlands, and Klaus Streicher, Consul General of Germany in Erbil, along with their accompanying delegation.”

“During the meeting, attention was drawn to the parliamentary elections in KRI, along with the KDP's stance and observations regarding the elections.”

The statement also emphasized the significance of conducting elections in KRI.

Both the Dutch and German consuls, according to the statement, “expressed their support for holding fair elections that represent the democratic face of KRI, with the assistance of relevant parties in the Region to overcome political crises.”

Barzani praised the “supportive role of both friendly countries, the Netherlands and Germany, in advocating for the Kurdish cause.”

He affirmed that “the KDP is the cornerstone of legitimacy and elections in the Region. Over the past two years, the party has spared no effort to hold elections on time. However, the electoral process has been obstructed, resorting openly to external influences and the Federal Court to hinder the conduct of fair and transparent elections.”

“Seats representing national and religious components have been canceled, and over four hundred thousand voters have been deprived of their right to vote.”

“Moreover, preconditions and mechanisms have been imposed on the elections, distancing them from integrity and transparency, rendering the elections unrepresentative of the true voices of the Kurdish people.”

Barzani stressed that “the KDP advocates for free and fair elections without any prior intervention or design.”

He pointed out “the necessity of addressing all technical, constitutional, and legal obstacles regarding the electoral process to ensure that representation reflects the will of the Kurdish people, serving democracy and the legitimacy of institutions in the Region.”

In March, the KDP declared its decision to boycott the upcoming parliamentary elections in KRI, warning of potential withdrawal from Iraq's political process.

The decision came after the Federal Supreme Court took verdicts regarding the Kurdish elections, including canceling the quota seats, dividing the Region into four constituencies instead of the single-constituency system in previous elections, and Iraq's Independent High Electoral Commission (IHEC) to take over from KRG's electoral commission to supervise parliamentary elections.

"We believe that it is in the interest of our people and our country not to comply with an unconstitutional decision and a system imposed from outside the will of the people of Kurdistan and its constitutional institutions and not to participate in elections conducted contrary to the law, the constitution, and under the umbrella of an imposed electoral system." KDP statement said.

Notably, KDP is a prominent political force in Iraqi Kurdistan. It is the oldest Kurdish political Party in Iraq.

In the current Kurdish Parliament, the Party holds 45 seats out of 111, followed by the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) with 21 seats and the Gorran Movement with 12 seats.