ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Senior Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) figures Nechirvan and Masrour Barzani on Sunday urged voters in the Kurdistan Region’s eastern Sulaimani province to rally behind the party in Iraq’s upcoming legislative vote, highlighting development pledges and the need to boost Kurdish influence in Baghdad. Meanwhile in federal Iraq, Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani’s coalition distanced itself from a candidate over alleged forgery.
KDP First Deputy Leader Nechirvan Barzani called on Sulaimani voters to back the party, stressing their role in advancing the party’s record of development and governance.
“The KDP responds [to people’s support] with services and development. That is why I see the KDP becoming more and more popular in Sulaimani,” he told crowds at a campaign rally in Sulaimani, urging “the people of Sulaimani to give the KDP a chance to show how prosperity and welfare can increase in this area.”
In the last federal elections, held in October 2021, the KDP won 31 seats in Iraq’s parliament. This year, with 175 candidates nationwide, the party is fielding its largest list to date.
The KDP officially launched its election campaign in mid-October under the slogan “Partnership, Balance, and Consensus.” Days later, Nechirvan Barzani, who also serves as President of the Kurdistan Region, called on supporters to help the party reach “one million votes and more” in the election, slated for November 11.
“Do not forget you are also an important part of the ‘1 million… and more’ campaign,” he said Sunday. “We want to strengthen the KDP, and we want the KDP vote to increase in this area.”
The senior KDP figure also highlighted major investment plans for Sulaimani and the neighboring Halabja province. “Rest assured that the KDP’s programs for this area are grand,” he stated, expressing regret that “the shortcomings in this area are a source of great grief for the Kurdistan Democratic Party.”
He also urged voters in Iraq’s disputed territories to turn out in large numbers.
Under the Baath regime (1968-2003), Iraq implemented Arabization policies across disputed regions, especially oil-rich Kirkuk, displacing hundreds of thousands of Kurds, Turkmen, and Assyrians and settling Arab families in their place. Article 140 of the Iraqi constitution mandates normalization, census, and referendum to determine the final administrative status of these areas.
The KDP’s first deputy said full implementation of the federal constitution remains essential to Kurdish rights, arguing, “There is a federal constitution in Iraq, but the authority and administration remain centralized, not federal.”
“It is our national duty for all of us to vote,” he added, saying Kurdish influence in Baghdad hinges on turnout.
The KDP's Second Deputy Leader Masrour Barzani also reiterated the call to reclaim Kirkuk and other disputed territories, saying Iraq stands “at a crossroads” between centralization and defending constitutional rights through strong KDP representation.
Noting that the KDP faces no competition in the Kurdistan Region in the anticipated ballot, he emphasized, “This time we must compete in Baghdad.”
Under Masrour Barzani’s premiership, the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) launched service projects, including the Runaki (Light) initiative - a 24-hour electricity program launched in October 2024. On Thursday, Erbil’s electricity ministry said the project now serves around 4.5 million residents across the Region, including over 1.3 million people in Sulaimani. Water infrastructure projects are also expected to extend to Sulaimani.
Nabard Omar, director of Iraq’s Independent High Electoral Commission (IHEC) in the Kurdistan Region, told Rudaw on Sunday that 41,000 additional voter cards will be delivered in the Region on Monday. Some 413,000 cards had already been distributed, with 25,000 uncollected, he said.
Meanwhile, IHEC media team member al-Hassan Qabas told Rudaw that invitations have been sent to “90 Arab and foreign countries, including embassies, consulates, and important election-related organizations,” to monitor the vote. Domestic party monitor registration closed Thursday, with final figures pending verification and ID issuance.
Environmental concerns
With the federal legislative elections only eight days away, Sanan Abdullah, spokesperson for the Kurdistan Region’s Board of Environmental Protection and Improvement, criticized political parties for disorganized campaigning, warning that banners and posters on public property have damaged urban aesthetics and greenery.
“Specific places for election campaigning should have been designated, not as seen now, where greenery, trees, poles and every place is covered with election campaigns materials," he said. "This causes great harm to the environment, especially hanging banners on trees, which can cause them to dry out over time."
Abdullah added that parties have one month after the election to remove these materials or municipalities will do so at their expense, noting that the KRG spends 50,000 dinars (around $38) to collect each ton of waste, a cost that will double if rules are ignored.
Armed groups, power blocs and disqualifications
Abu Ali al-Askari, the military commander of the powerful Iraqi armed group Kata’ib Hezbollah, said in a statement on his official Telegram channel that the upcoming election represents “a major challenge” that will shape Iraq for the next two decades. He also urged members of the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) - the Iran-aligned umbrella organization of Iraqi armed groups to which Kata’ib Hezbollah belongs - to vote for the Huqooq Movement, the group’s political wing.
Askari also stated that the position of parliament speaker “will be reserved for a new face,” rather than returning to any of the previous holders of the post.
For its part, the Reconstruction and Development list, led by Iraqi Prime Minister Sudani, announced Sunday it has distanced itself from candidate Hussein Saeed over “document forgery.” Lawbreakers have “no place” in the coalition, the bloc said.
The move came against the backdrop of a Wednesday decision by Iraq’s electoral body, the IHEC, to remove Saeed for alleged certificate forgery. On Friday, Saeed filed a complaint accusing Sudani of using state resources for campaigning.
Sadr unmoved on boycott
Meanwhile, influential Iraqi Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr again denied backing any electoral list, calling related rumors “fantasies and lies that the corrupt and saboteurs are spreading.”
He instead shifted focus to tribal meetings over the continued water shortages in Iraq’s two main rivers, the Tigris and the Euphrates, saying affected communities “have lost everything.” His office recently thanked supportive tribes for observing his call to boycott.
Meanwhile, hundreds of farmers rallied Saturday in Iraq’s southern Diwaniyah, Muthanna, Najaf, Karbala and Wasit provinces, demanding overdue compensation for drought-related crop losses and threatening to boycott the November 11 vote.
"There should be no elections if there are no compensations," one protester said in a video that has been widely circulated among Iraqi users on social media. "Just as they deprived you of farming, deprive them of seats,” he added. Protesters accused officials of breaking promises and neglecting farmers’ rights over the past ten months.
Elections are scheduled for November 11.
According to the IHEC, around 21.4 million eligible voters have renewed their biometric cards, signaling potential participation in the upcoming ballot.
A total of 31 alliances, 38 parties, 23 independent candidates and 56 quota candidates will compete for 329 parliamentary seats, including nine reserved for minorities. More than 7,700 candidates are registered to run, with over 39,000 polling stations planned across 8,703 centers, in addition to special and displaced-voter stations.