Shafaq News
More than a year and a half afterthe Kurdistan Region’s parliamentary elections, the formation of the tenthcabinet remains stalled amid ongoing political disputes between the two mainparties, the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) and the Patriotic Union ofKurdistan (PUK).
As rounds of dialogue andnegotiations continue, questions are mounting over the real reasons behind thedelay in forming the government, and whether the crisis is rooted in theelection results themselves or in how those results are being translated into apolitical partnership capable of managing the next phase.
Parliamentary Seat Map
The Kurdistan Parliament elections,held on October 20, 2024, produced a new political landscape that reshaped thebalance of power inside parliament. However, no party secured a comfortablemajority that would allow it to form a government on its own, making consensusamong the major political forces a prerequisite for establishing the newcabinet.
According to the official results,the KDP won 39 seats, while the PUK came second with 23 seats. The NewGeneration Movement (Al-Jeel Al-Jadeed) made significant gains, securing 15seats. The Kurdistan Islamic Union won seven seats, the National Positioncoalition obtained four seats, and the Kurdistan Justice Group secured threeseats. The remaining were distributed among other political parties and quotarepresentatives of minority communities.
The results clearly showed that theKDP maintained its position as the largest political force in the Region butfailed to secure an outright majority that would enable it to form a governmentindependently. The PUK remained the second-largest force capable of influencingthe government formation process.
At the same time, the rise of theNew Generation Movement added further complexity to the political landscapeafter it became the third-largest bloc in parliament, creating new politicalequations that had not existed in previous legislative terms.
: Kurdistan Region’s political deadlock: Impact and perils
Electoral Entitlement or PoliticalPartnership?
Saadi Ahmed Pira, a member of thePUK Political Bureau, said the crisis surrounding the formation of theKurdistan Region’s government is linked less to the election results themselvesthan to how those results are being handled and translated into genuinepolitical partnership within the executive authority.
“The PUK believes that electoralentitlement should be the foundation upon which the government formationprocess and the distribution of responsibilities and positions are built,” Piratold Shafaq News.
He argued that the KDP does notadequately adhere to this principle and instead seeks to form the governmentaccording to its own vision before allocating positions to other parties,without involving them effectively in drafting the government’s program,determining its structure, or defining how powers should be distributed.
“The real problem is not the numberof seats won by political parties, but the absence of full recognition of theprinciple of partnership based on electoral entitlement.”
He called on the KDP to apply withinthe Kurdistan Region the same standards of balance, consensus, and partnershipthat it demands from the federal government in Baghdad, ensuring that the newcabinet reflects the election results and the political will of voters.
Regarding calls for newparliamentary elections, Pira stressed that such a step would not solve thecurrent crisis because a new vote would not produce a fundamentally differentpolitical reality and would impose high financial costs.
He said the PUK does not fear newelections and believes it is politically and organizationally stronger todaythan it was before the last vote, arguing that resorting to elections would notaddress the root problem, which lies in disagreements over the governmentformation mechanism and respect for parties’ electoral mandates.
Pira noted that the PUK continues tocall for dialogue and negotiations aimed at forming a government based ongenuine partnership, political balance, and electoral entitlement, ensuring theparticipation of all forces represented in the Kurdistan Parliament in managingthe next phase.
He also described current regionaland international involvement in Kurdish affairs as positive, saying it“contributes to encouraging dialogue and bringing political parties closertogether.”
PUK President Bafel Talabani hasstated that a government similar to the current one cannot be formed,reiterating that his party seeks a cabinet based on partnership and balance,“one that understands the demands of the Kurdish public and works to improverelations between Erbil and Baghdad.”
Meanwhile, Kurdistan Region DeputyPrime Minister Qubad Talabani, a PUK leader, has likewise stressed thereadiness of political forces to reach a genuine agreement on forming the newregional government.
Crisis Predates the Elections
The KDP rejects accusations that itis responsible for the stalled negotiations and insists that the current crisisis linked to political positions that predate the elections, as well as newalliances formed afterward inside parliament.
Kamran Gharib, a KDP official,affirmed that the party had invited the PUK to enter negotiations over theformation of the tenth cabinet before Iraq’s parliamentary elections, “but thePUK did not respond to the invitation.”
Speaking to Shafaq News, Gharib saidthe election results and the KDP’s clear gain, not only within the KurdistanRegion but also compared with other Iraqi political forces, prompted the PUK tosearch for alternative political options and alliances, noticing that this wasreflected in the PUK’s move toward coordination with the New GenerationMovement and the formation of a joint bloc inside the Kurdistan Parliament.
“A large portion of New Generation’svotes came from al-Sulaymaniyah, Garmian, Halabja, and areas within the PUK’ssphere of influence.”
He argued that those votes primarilyrepresented “dissatisfaction with PUK policies” and that many voters whosupported New Generation had previously been part of the PUK’s support basebefore shifting to an opposition political project.
Addressing demands for thedistribution of positions according to a “50-50” formula, Gharib stressed thatthe arrangement belonged to a previous political phase and “has been overtakenby current political and electoral developments.”
He insisted that the present stagerequires respect for each party’s electoral entitlement based on itsrepresentation in parliament rather than adherence to traditional formulas thatprevailed in earlier periods.
“The KDP, when it calls forpartnership, balance, and consensus at the federal level, does not do so forthe benefit of the party itself but rather in defense of the rights of theKurdish component within the Iraqi state,” Gharib said in response to Pira’sremarks regarding partnership.
He also recalled the periodfollowing the rise of the Gorran Movement in Al-Sulaymaniyah, Garmian, andHalabja, when the PUK’s electoral results declined to a level that, accordingto electoral entitlement standards, did not qualify it to hold the position ofKurdistan Region Prime Minister.
Back to history, Gharib said, theKDP decided, at the request of the late President Jalal Talabani, to grant theposition to the PUK, leading to the appointment of Barham Salih as PrimeMinister of the Kurdistan Regional Government.
Gharib highlighted that the “newPUK” is currently advancing demands and issues that the KDP believes are notbased on clear legal or democratic foundations, adding that any successfulpolitical process must be based on dialogue, understanding, and respect forelectoral entitlement, “not on imposing conditions or dictates by any party.”
Regarding the possibility of newparliamentary elections, Gharib said “all options remain on the table” toreactivate the legislative institution and form a new government, “except forany options that lead to escalation or confrontation.”
Like Pira, Gharib pointed to theexternal dimension, saying neighboring countries view the stability of theKurdistan Region as a shared interest and seek a strong government capable ofmanaging political, security, and economic affairs efficiently.
Roots of the Crisis
Between the competing narratives ofthe two parties, observers interviewed by Shafaq News believe the crisisextends beyond current disputes over positions and ministerial portfolios andis linked to a long history of political rivalry and differing visionsregarding the governance and future of the Kurdistan Region.
Political analyst Abu Bakr Karawanitold Shafaq News that the failure of the KDP and PUK to reach an agreementstems from four main factors that intersect and directly affect the governmentformation process.
The first factor is the historicallegacy of political disputes and conflicts between the two parties, dating backdecades to the 1960s. The second involves current political disagreements andunresolved issues that remain points of contention. The third relates todiffering views on local, regional, and international issues, as well ascontrasting perspectives on the future of the Kurdistan Region and itsadministration. The fourth factor concerns conflicting political interests tiedto the distribution of positions and powers within the next government.
Karwani said the absence of aunified institutional framework across the Region, combined with theadministrative and political divisions based on party influence in certainareas, “has deepened internal disagreements,” adding that this reality hascreated an environment that allows external actors to intervene and exploitthese divisions to advance political, national, factional, or sectarianinterests.
The political forces in theKurdistan Region, particularly the KDP and PUK, must recognize the scale of therisks that could result from the continuation of political division anddisagreement, he stressed, identifying the absence of an effective constitutionfor the Kurdistan Region as one of the key factors shaping the current reality.“There is no constitutional framework that clearly defines government formationprocedures or designates the authority responsible for assigning that task.”
He said these factors make anunderstanding between the KDP and PUK essential for successfully forming agovernment and ensuring its stability. “The most realistic option at thecurrent stage is the formation of a consensus government that includes the twomain forces and is based on political partnership and national consensus,Karwani said, concluded that the nature of the political system in theKurdistan Region, together with weak institutional structures compared with thelevel of party influence, necessitates consensus-based solutions rather than apolitical majority approach.
“This makes a partnership governmentthe best option for ensuring political and administrative stability and movingconditions toward greater stability and development.”
Written and edited by Shafaq Newsstaff.