KDP Set to Chair Two Kirkuk Provincial Council Committees After Returning to Sessions
Kurdish party says its return is not about positions, pledges focus on fighting corruption, reducing bureaucracy and ending discrimination
ERBIL (Kurdistan24) — The Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) is expected to take the chairmanship of two committees in the Kirkuk Provincial Council following its return to council sessions, based on its electoral representation and the council’s internal regulations.
Shokhan Hasib, a member of the Kirkuk Provincial Council from the KDP faction, on Wednesday told Kurdistan24 that the party’s return was not driven by an effort to secure positions or official posts, but by its commitment to participating in the council’s work.
“We did not return to the Kirkuk Provincial Council sessions to obtain positions or posts,” Hasib said. “However, according to the council’s internal regulations, every council member, except the council chairman, is entitled to chair one of the committees.”
The council has 14 members, with each member entitled to chair one committee while also serving as a member of several other committees, she said.
Hasib noted that some council members currently chair two committees, but said the distribution of committee chairmanships is expected to be reviewed following the KDP faction’s return.
“Certainly, after our return, the distribution and chairmanship of the committees will be reviewed, and as the party’s faction, we will be entitled to two committee chairmanships,” she said.
KDP denies seeking specific committees
Hasib rejected suggestions that the KDP faction had specifically requested control of particular committees.
She said the faction’s priority in the Kirkuk Provincial Council would instead be to confront corruption, prevent discrimination and reduce bureaucratic procedures within the city’s local government institutions.
“We have not specifically requested any particular committee,” Hasib said, emphasizing that the faction’s focus would be on addressing issues affecting the delivery of government services and the functioning of local institutions.
The KDP faction returned to Kirkuk Provincial Council sessions on July 28, 2026, after boycotting the council for more than a year and a half.
The return was welcomed by other factions within the council, which said the KDP’s participation would strengthen the council and give it greater political weight.
The KDP’s return marks a significant development in the political dynamics of Kirkuk’s provincial administration, with its participation expected to influence the council’s committee structure and the direction of its work in the coming period.
Kirkuk, a disputed territory under Article 140 of Iraq’s Constitution, remains at the center of competing claims between the federal government in Baghdad and the Kurdistan Region, with its political administration continuing to reflect the province’s complex ethnic and political landscape.
Kirkuk, a strategically and politically sensitive province, remains a focal point of competing political interests among its Kurdish, Arab and Turkmen communities.
The province’s local administration has continued to face challenges over governance, power-sharing and the delivery of public services, making the work of the Kirkuk Provincial Council particularly significant in shaping the city’s political and administrative future.