Erbil, Kurdistan Region – The Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) is set to submit its list of candidates for the upcoming Kurdistan Region parliamentary elections to the Independent High Electoral Commission (IHEC) today, Thursday, July 18, 2024.

The IHEC had previously extended the deadline for submitting candidate lists from parties, coalitions, and independent candidates until today. According to Khaled Abbas, the Director of the Duhok branch of IHEC, "All branches of the IHEC in the Kurdistan Region will receive the list of candidates until 2:00 PM today, and the deadline will not be extended further."

Abbas also stated that the KDP had officially informed them of their intention to submit their list of candidates for the sixth parliamentary term today.

Meanwhile, Marwan Mohammed, the Director of the Erbil branch of IHEC, reported that as of today, two coalitions, 11 political parties, and 28 independent candidates had submitted their lists. This includes 12 Turkmen candidates and six Christian candidates who submitted their lists to the Erbil branch.

A senior source within the KDP's political bureau previously confirmed that all KDP branches in Erbil, Duhok, and Sulaymaniyah had prepared a preliminary list of candidates. This list is expected to be submitted to IHEC soon, with the final approval from the party's political bureau anticipated within the next few days.

On July 8, 2024, IHEC announced the number of eligible voters for the upcoming elections, stating that Erbil province has 1,366,462 voters, with 1,016,357 having issued biometric cards. Sulaymaniyah and Halabja provinces have 1,496,000 voters, of which 1,146,000 have biometric cards. Duhok province has 926,000 voters, with 738,000 having issued their biometric cards. In total, there are 3,789,000 eligible voters, with 2,901,000 having issued biometric cards so far.

Additionally, on July 1, 2024, IHEC announced the need for over 42,000 polling staff to conduct the elections. The commission's spokesperson, Jumana Al-Ghalai, noted that the Board of Commissioners would determine the matter of compensations later.

The date for the parliamentary elections was officially set for October 20, 2024, by Nechirvan Barzani, President of the Kurdistan Region, as announced by Dilshad Shahab, spokesperson for the Kurdistan Region Presidency. The date was decided after thorough assessments and discussions with relevant parties.

Under Regional Decree No. 222 of 2024, all relevant entities are required to cooperate and coordinate with IHEC to ensure the successful implementation of the elections.