Campaigning kicked off on Tuesday for a parliamentary election in Iraq's autonomous Kurdish region amid political divisions a year after hopes for independence were dashed.

Around 673 candidates from 29 political movements have thrown their hats into the ring hoping to secure one of 111 seats in Kurdistan's parliament at the election on September 30.

Eleven of the seats are however reserved for religious and ethnic minorities and five will go to Turkmen candidates, five to Christians and one to the Armenian community.

The outgoing parliament is dominated by the Kurdistan Democratic Party of veteran leader and former president Massud Barzani -- as is the government.

The KDP currently holds 38 seats, while its traditional rival, the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK), has 18.

The main opposition Goran (Kurdish for "change") party has 24 seats in the outgoing parliament.

The election is not expected to change the political map in Kurdistan, according to experts, but could shed light on the divisions that emerged after the September 2017 independence referendum.

That vote -- championed by Barzani -- saw more than 92 percent of Kurds back secession but the federal government in Baghdad was incensed after long warning that any plebiscite would be "illegal".

In response Baghdad imposed economic penalties while federal troops pushed Kurdish forces out of oil fields in Kirkuk province which were vital for Kurdish economy.

"The political climate is tense," said Kurdish political analyst Hokar Jeto.

"All indications are that there could be a low voter turnout similar to what happened in the Iraqi legislative polls."

The Kurdish election follows a parliamentary election across Iraq in May which saw a record low turnout of around 55 percent, with longtime political figures pushed out by voters seeking change in a country mired in conflict and corruption.

Related Links
News From Across The Stans

Tweet

Thanks for being here; We need your help. The SpaceDaily news network continues to grow but revenues have never been harder to maintain. With the rise of Ad Blockers, and Facebook - our traditional revenue sources via quality network advertising continues to decline. And unlike so many other news sites, we don't have a paywall - with those annoying usernames and passwords. Our news coverage takes time and effort to publish 365 days a year. If you find our news sites informative and useful then please consider becoming a regular supporter or for now make a one off contribution.
SpaceDaily Contributor $5 Billed Once credit card or paypal		SpaceDaily Monthly Supporter $5 Billed Monthly paypal only

Mattis makes unannounced visit to Afghanistan
Kabul (AFP) Sept 7, 2018
US Defense Secretary Jim Mattis met with top Afghan leaders during an unannounced visit to Kabul on Friday, adding his weight to a flurry of diplomatic efforts to bring the Taliban to the negotiating table. His trip comes a little more than a year after President Donald Trump unveiled a revamped strategy for Afghanistan that saw him commit thousands of additional US forces to the country on an open-ended basis. Mattis, on his fourth visit to the war-torn country since becoming defence chief in ... read more