ERBIL, Kurdistan Region—Among the ordinary voters in Kurdistan’s provincial elections on Wednesday, were leaders of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK), casting their ballots dressed up in traditional Kurdish clothes and accompanied by their families.
They called for a peaceful process and focus on “on building a democratic society than rivalry,”
“A civilized success of this election is far more important than any rivalry or conflict,” said Adnan Mufti, senior PUK leader and former speaker of parliament, as he cast his vote in Erbil. “I hope all parties avoid tensions so as to prove that we are a people seeking our rights.”
Outside a polling station in Sulaimani, Mala Bakhtyar, another PUK official had a similar tone. He spoke of a possible future partnership with other groups, in particular the Change Movement (Gorran).
“I hope the election result is such that we can talk to Gorran and together keep this province calm and away from political terror,” Bakhtyar said.
His comment was an indication that the PUK might expect a close call with Gorran, both of whom are vying for the governorship of Sulaimani.
“We are ready to talk and I hope we can reach an agreement,” Bakhtyar added.
He said that despite the recent “propaganda campaign against us” we still acted rationally.
Overall turnout in Wednesday’s elections across the Kurdistan Region’s three provinces was estimated at 70-80 percent.
Miqdad Sharifi of the Electoral Commission said at a press conference in Baghdad that the vote had gone without a hitch, except in one case where his staff caught an individual carrying 45 electoral cards in his pockets.
He didn’t reveal the identity and location of the person.
Close to 20 political groups are fighting for seats in Kurdistan’s provincial councils and the Iraqi parliament.
Special focus however, was on the PUK which has failed to make a decision about joining the Kurdish government in Erbil after seven months of negotiations with the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP).
PUK leaders defend their position, saying that their political history and achievements in the September 21 polls have to be taken into account by their counterparts.
“Our leadership committee decided two months ago to join the government,” said Mufti. “But we have demands because people have expectations of the PUK based on the seats we won.”
The PUK won 18 seats in Kurdistan’s parliamentary elections on September 21.
Meanwhile, Mufti said that the PUK has been cooperative with other groups as was demonstrated in the first parliamentary session on Tuesday.
“Even though our bloc wasn’t satisfied with the session, we took part and gave our opinion as support for the political process in the Kurdistan Region,” he said.
Some observers believe that the PUK will give serious thought to the negotiations once the results of today’s elections have become clear.
The PUK hopes that a good record in the provincial and national polls will enable it to negotiate from a position of strength.
The PUK has been offered the ministry of culture, ministry of health, construction, higher education, ministry of Anfal and Martayrs Affairs, and the vice presidency. But leaders of the group insist on getting the interior ministry.
Local observers reported that the voting process was successful except that in Sulaimani representatives of Gorran, the KDP and the Islamic Union voiced concerns about fraud and urged election monitors to remain vigilant.
In the Kurdish town of Dubis near Kirkuk, a roadside bomb killed two women on their way to vote.
Meanwhile some party representatives in Duhok complained that the staff of the electoral commission were inefficient in dealing with voters and that the process was slow.
