Kurdish parties to take evidence of electoral fraud to US consulate
“We have promised to defend the stolen votes of the people of the Kurdistan Region and seek our rights,” Hemin Shekhany, head of Gorran’s office in Erbil, told Rudaw.
Yusuf Muhammed, a Change Movement (Gorran) politician and former KRG parliament speaker, said the parties are also in Baghdad on Tuesday to put pressure on the high commission to cancel the results, reported Xendan, media close to CDJ.
The parties are also expected to read a statement Tuesday afternoon in front of UN headquarters in the Kurdish capital.
The electoral commission announced preliminary results of the vote in Kurdistan Region provinces including Erbil, Sulaimani on Monday night.
“What really made us sad last night was the announcement of the results by the election commission of Iraq,” Shekhany said, promising details about concretes steps they plan to take.
“We will have another say today. We will definitely not get bogged down in just issuing statements. Our meeting today is to how to move, how to make people see us practically defending their votes,” he explained.
According to preliminary official results, the PUK won in Sulaimani by a large margin, reclaiming the province from Gorran who has had the majority since 2009 when the party first emerged.
This result shocked the parties, who have accused the PUK of fraud. Six parties – Gorran, Komal, KIU, CDJ, IKM, and the Communist Party – have rejected the result and called for a complete do-over.
Bafel Talabani, the older son of the late founder of the PUK in a congratulatory message described his party’s victory over Gorran and other parties in Sulaimani as a “golden victory.”