WASHINGTON DC - The United States welcomes setting a date for Kurdistan Region’s long-delayed parliamentary election and expects the vote to be “free, transparent and occur without further delay,” a State Department spokesperson said on Wednesday.
“We welcome the announcement of parliamentary elections on October 20,” State Department Spokesperson Mathew Miller said in response to a question from Rudaw during a daily press briefing.
“The Iraqi Kurdistan Region elections are a vital element of the democratic process and we expect the authorities to ensure that they are free, transparent and occur without further delay,” Miller added.
After multiple postponements that delayed the vote by two years, Kurdistan Region President Nechirvan Barzani on Wednesday set the election for October 20.
“This date is not the date that everyone agreed on, but it is the date that we ultimately chose. There is no other solution other than holding the Kurdistan parliament elections,” Kurdistan Region Presidency spokesperson Dilshad Shahab told reporters in Erbil.
The vote was delayed by disputes between political parties over how to run the election and distribution of seats. Interference from Baghdad and a controversial Federal Court ruling that abolished minority representation in the parliament fueled the political tensions. A resolution was finally reached last month when a second ruling from Baghdad restored five seats allocated for minorities.
“We appreciate the Iraqi Kurdistan Region's president’s efforts to reach agreement between all parties,” Miller said during his briefing.
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