Commission halts preparations for November 1 elections
ERBIL, Kurdistan Region – Election preparations have been halted two weeks before the Kurdistan Region was to go to the polls, the electoral commission announced on Wednesday.
A council of the High Independent Electoral and Referendum Commission “decided to halt all the preparations for the elections of November 1, 2017, because of not having candidates at the specified time and current new developments,” read the statement.
The commission said it is waiting for the Kurdistan parliament to make a decision on the matter.
Presidential and parliamentary elections were scheduled to be held simultaneously on November 1.
Parliament was scheduled to sit on Wednesday but the session has been postponed because of disagreements among the parties on delaying the elections, according to information obtained by Rudaw.
Abubakir Haladni, the head of the parliamentary bloc of the Kurdistan Islamic Union (KIU), said their faction will boycott the parliamentary session that was to discuss delaying the elections.
“The Islamic Union’s faction will boycott the parliamentary session. We are prepared to hold the elections whenever,” Haladni said.
“We participated in the reactivation of the parliament so that the parliament plays its role in attending to decisive questions and nullifying the unfair decision of reduced salaries,” he explained.
He believes parliament should be focused on more pressing matters in the wake of the loss of territory to Iraqi forces this week.
“Kurdistan’s parliament should have discussed the unfortunate situations of Kurdistan which led to the loss of large territories of Kurdistan and the squandering of the blood of thousands of martyrs. Instead, they are engaging the parliament with the secondary issue of elections,” he said.
Twenty-one political entities had registered for the parliamentary elections. Official campaigning had not yet begun.
The deadline for candidates to register for presidential elections passed without anyone submitting their name for the top post. Gorran fielded a candidate but the electoral commission said his paperwork was submitted late.
Current President Masoud Barzani has stated that he will not run again. He also ruled out any of his family members seeking the presidency.
The Kurdistan Region last held parliamentary elections in 2013. The presidential election has not been held since 2009.
A council of the High Independent Electoral and Referendum Commission “decided to halt all the preparations for the elections of November 1, 2017, because of not having candidates at the specified time and current new developments,” read the statement.
The commission said it is waiting for the Kurdistan parliament to make a decision on the matter.
Presidential and parliamentary elections were scheduled to be held simultaneously on November 1.
Parliament was scheduled to sit on Wednesday but the session has been postponed because of disagreements among the parties on delaying the elections, according to information obtained by Rudaw.
Abubakir Haladni, the head of the parliamentary bloc of the Kurdistan Islamic Union (KIU), said their faction will boycott the parliamentary session that was to discuss delaying the elections.
“The Islamic Union’s faction will boycott the parliamentary session. We are prepared to hold the elections whenever,” Haladni said.
“We participated in the reactivation of the parliament so that the parliament plays its role in attending to decisive questions and nullifying the unfair decision of reduced salaries,” he explained.
He believes parliament should be focused on more pressing matters in the wake of the loss of territory to Iraqi forces this week.
“Kurdistan’s parliament should have discussed the unfortunate situations of Kurdistan which led to the loss of large territories of Kurdistan and the squandering of the blood of thousands of martyrs. Instead, they are engaging the parliament with the secondary issue of elections,” he said.
Twenty-one political entities had registered for the parliamentary elections. Official campaigning had not yet begun.
The deadline for candidates to register for presidential elections passed without anyone submitting their name for the top post. Gorran fielded a candidate but the electoral commission said his paperwork was submitted late.
Current President Masoud Barzani has stated that he will not run again. He also ruled out any of his family members seeking the presidency.
The Kurdistan Region last held parliamentary elections in 2013. The presidential election has not been held since 2009.