Shingal has no representative in Iraqi parliament

DUHOK, Kurdistan Region — No representatives from Shingal managed to grab a seat in the Iraqi parliament as the country's elections body did not count the majority of their votes, according to multiple officials.

After the announcement of the final results of the May 12 parliament elections, the KDP internal elections body filed a lawsuit against the commission when none of its candidates and none from other parties earned a seat.

"We were supported by the votes of IDPs, but their votes were not counted and thus none of the KDP candidates succeeded," Maysar Heji, a failed KDP candidate in Shingal, told Rudaw.

As many as 150,000 IDPs from Shingal voted in Duhok. The IDPs votes had not been fully counted when the commission in Baghdad announced the final result.

The KDP fielded the most candidates in Shingal and is disappointed, anticipating that 3 of its 6 Yezidi candidates in Nineveh would earn enough votes to be able to enter parliament.

"There were plenty of reasons for the failure," Qadir Qachagh, a KDP leadership member, told Rudaw. "Seventy-five percent of their votes were not counted."

Qachagh laid the blame on the commission for failing to provide advice for the IDPs on how to or where to vote.

He put the partial blame on his party also saying they were forced to field 31 candidates and that "dispersed our votes."

Shingal IDPs voted at 190 polling stations, but the commission counted votes cast in only 70 stations.

Khasraw Goran, the head of the KDP's internal elections office, told Rudaw they have filed a complaint against the commission.

Rudaw contacted Iraq's Independent High Electoral Commission (IHEC). They expressed wonder as to how the majority of the Shingal IDPs ballot boxes not counted.

"It was very surprising for us also. While our teams were counting the votes of the Shingal IDPs, the commission in Baghdad announced the results," Sakvan Derashi, the media officer of Iraq’s elections commission for Duhok, told Rudaw.

In the past three rounds of the Iraqi parliament, the Yezidis of Shingal had been able to win the minority quota seat reserved for them. But this time, Saib Khidir, a Yezidi from Bashik, took it.

There has been no census in Iraq since 1987. Each seat in Iraq’s parliament represents about 100,000 constituents. 

Yezidi activists like Murad Ismael have expressed their dissatisfaction with the election results for Yezidis in Nineveh.

“Based on initial information we have: 80-85,000 Yazidis voted in Nineveh and 10-15,000 voted in Dohuk,” tweeted the organization’s co-founder and executive director on May 12. “A substantial decrease from previous elections where more than 150,000 voted. These numbers would typically make up to 5 seats but because quota was unfair."

 

Hundreds of thousands of Yezidis remain displaced in camps in the Kurdistan Region, or in diaspora.

“And because Yazidi votes are distributed on many blocs, it is likely Yazidi won't have this number of seats. The single Yazidi quota is unfair. For twice now, the high court ruled in favor of increasing quota seats, but the parliament declines - another way of discrimination," added Murad.

Shingal, located in Nineveh, is a disputed area claimed by Erbil and Baghdad. Incumbent Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi’s Nasr (Victory) Alliance won with 7 seats, followed by the KDP’s 6, Wataniya with 4, Fatih 3, Nineveh is our Identity 3, the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan 1. Christians and Yezidis each have a seat in the province per the quota system.

Of the 12 seats up for grabs in Duhok, the KDP won 10 and the Kurdistan Islamic Union 1. Under the minority quota system, Christians in Duhok will also have a representative in Baghdad.