Electoral campaign kicks off in Kurdistan for Sep. 30 vote

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – The election campaign for the Sep. 30 vote in the Kurdish semi-autonomous region began on Tuesday early morning, with candidates competing for a seat in the Kurdistan Region’s Parliament.

Posters of candidates and parties were erected overnight in different cities across the Kurdistan Region, a week after the Independent High Election and Referendum Commission (IHERC) postponed the start of the campaign, from Sep. 5 to Sep. 11.

According to the IHERC, 702 candidates are competing for one of the 111 seats available in parliament. There are 28 groups in total running for office on the electoral list.

Eleven of the seats are reserved for minorities, and 30 for women.

With a population of almost six million people, the Kurdistan Region has more than three million eligible voters.

The election comes five months after Iraq held its national elections on May 12.

Unlike Iraq’s federal election, which used an electronic vote-counting device, the Kurdistan Region will manually count ballots to quell concerns any party may have over vote-rigging, election tampering, and fraud.

The electoral commission forbids candidates from campaigning in government offices, university and school grounds, mosques, and religious shrines.

Editing by Nadia Riva