“Some political parties of Kurdistan Region have doubts about the results of the latest election process and KDP has doubts on unofficial election results in Sulaimani province, so if it is necessary, all votes should be recounted manually,” read a party statement.
Masoud Barzani, the head of the Kurdistan Democratic Party and former president of the Kurdistan Region, led the meeting.
The statement added that a recount would help to maintain stability through the electoral process.
KDP also evaluated the performance of Iraq’s Independent High Electoral Commission (IHEC), expressing that the election staff needed more training.
According to preliminary official results, the PUK won in Sulaimani by a large margin, reclaiming the province from the Change Movement (Gorran) who has had the majority since 2009 when the party first emerged.
Gorran was second, followed by the New Generation, the Islamic League (Komal), the KDP, the Coalition for Democracy and Justice (CDJ), and the Islamic Union (KIU).
Six parties – Gorran, Komal, KIU, CDJ, the Kurdistan Islamic Movement (IKM), and the Communist Party – have rejected the result and called for a complete do-over. They are planning to present evidence of irregularities to the US consulate in Erbil on Wednesday.
New Generation has not joined in the meetings, but filed a lawsuit in Baghdad against Iraq's electoral commission on Monday, complaining of fraud, even citing last night's unofficial announcement of election results for 10 of 18 provinces in the country as cause.
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.”
Among Kurdish parties, the KDP holds the most seats in the Iraqi parliament and in Kurdistan’s parliament. Its powerbases are in Erbil and Duhok, and areas of Nineveh province.
The KDP overwhelmingly won Erbil, according to the preliminary results, and finished just behind incumbent Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi’s Nasr (Victory) List in war-torn Nineveh.
On Tuesday night, the IHEC announced KDP overwhelmingly won Duhok and PUK took Kirkuk, where 12 and 13 seats are up for grabs, respectively. The KDP did not run any candidates in the latter; calling it “occupied” after Iraqi forces supported by Iran-back Hashd al-Shaabi paramilitaries took control of the city from Kurdish Peshmerga. Areas in Kirkuk, Diyala, Saladin, and Nineveh remain disputed, claimed by both Erbil and Baghdad.
Voter turnout was 55 percent in Duhok, 48 percent in Erbil, and 40 percent in Sulaimani, according to the IHEC. Across Iraq's 18 provinces, it was 44.52 percent.
Last updated at 11:30 p.m.
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