On August 21, Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) Prime Minister Masrour Barzani discussed the upcoming Kurdistan Parliamentary elections scheduled for October with UN Deputy Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Political Affairs and Electoral Assistance Claudio Cordone.
According to a KRG readout of the meeting, the UN Special Representative expressed his gratitude for the Kurdistan Regional Government’s support in preparing and coordinating effectively with the Iraqi Independent High Electoral Commission to ensure the successful conduct of the election process.
On the other hand, Prime Minister Barzani underlined the importance of holding the elections in a free, fair, and transparent manner, free from manipulation and fraud.
He also stressed the significance of the role of the UN and international observers, who are expected to actively monitor the election process to “ensure that it is conducted in a clean and impartial manner.”
The official mission of the United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI) in a post on X said that both officials “underlined the importance of holding timely, fair and transparent elections scheduled for 20 October.”
The Deputy Special Representative of the United Nations Secretary-General for Iraq for Political Affairs and Electoral Assistance, and UNAMI Officer-in-Charge, Claudio Cordone, met today in Erbil with the Kurdistan Region Prime Minister, Masrour Barzani. pic.twitter.com/qjS6teew9C
— UNAMI (@UNIraq) August 21, 2024
“UNAMI reiterated its commitment to working with all relevant institutions to achieve this goal.”
On June 26, Kurdistan Region President Nechirvan Barzani announced that the general election for the sixth term of the Kurdistan Region Parliament will take place on October 20, 2024, after years of delays.
The June announcement of the election date was welcomed by several countries and international institutions, including Canada, the UK, Germany, the United States, Japan, France, the EU, UNAMI, and others.
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On August 18, the new U.S. Consul General in Erbil Steve Bitner in a video message underlined that the United States is “anticipating a free, fair, and transparent election on October 20, which is a crucial milestone in the stability of the Kurdistan Region and its democracy.”
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Moreover, the KRG has set up a new committee chaired by the High Council for Women and Development to support and protect women candidates from cyber harassment during the election campaign.
