Politics

Kurdish parties back Iraqi VP’s National Coalition’s call for new elections

In a press conference organized on Sunday, six Kurdish parties echoed Iraqi Vice-President Ayad Allawi’s coalition’s call for a redo of the Iraqi parliamentary elections.

Kosar Nawzad 2018/05/13 15:16

kurdistan Kurdistan Reelection Election Iraq

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – In a press conference organized on Sunday, six Kurdish parties echoed Iraqi Vice-President Ayad Allawi’s coalition’s call for a redo of the Iraqi parliamentary elections.

“We have detailed proof of how those in power committed fraud in the election,” Kurdistan Islamic Union (KIU) member Muthana Amin said on behalf of the parties at the press conference.

Also present were representatives of the Movement for Change (Gorran), the Coalition for Justice and Democracy (CJD), Kurdistan Islamic Union (KIU), Komal, Kurdistan Islamic Movement (KIM), and Communist Party of Kurdistan (CPK).

“The six parties who stand here will take all the necessary and decisive actions to combat the fraud committed during the election,” Amin continued.

Agreeing with Allawi’s request for new elections, Amin said, “The results of the election must be invalidated, and the truth must be revealed to the public,” pointing out that the real voice of the public must be heard.

“What took place in the Iraqi parliamentary elections was a scheme against democracy and an injustice to our fellow citizens,” CJD leader Barham Salih had said earlier on Sunday.

Unlike previous elections, a new electronic device was used in Saturday’s parliamentary polls to verify voter cards, fingerprints, and to count ballots—a system meant to streamline the electoral process and prevent fraud from taking place.

All Kurdish political parties save for the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) had earlier on Sunday called for a manual recount of the votes alleging tampering of the electronic devices.

According to the Independent High Electoral Commission (IHEC), it had taken various measures to solve the different issues faced by voters at some polling stations to ensure a smooth election process.

Turnout stood at 44.5 percent, the IHEC said. It is the lowest voter turnout rate in Iraq in the past 13 years. In the 2014 elections, roughly 60 percent headed to the polls.

Editing by Karzan Sulaivany