Shafaq News/ On Friday, theIndependent High Electoral Commission (IHEC) opened polling stations forPeshmerga forces and internal security personnel to cast their votes in thespecial election for the Kurdistan Region Parliament.
The voting process began at 7:00 AMin 165 polling stations and will conclude at 6:00 PM, as scheduled by the IHEC.
A total of 1,091 candidates fromboth genders are competing for 100 seats in the Region, 5 of which are reservedfor minority groups, reduced from 11 seats by a decision from the FederalSupreme Court (the highest judicial authority in Iraq).
The number of seats allocated forwomen, according to the election law, must be at least 30.
The total number of voters is2,899,578, of whom 215,960 are eligible to vote in the special election. Theremaining 2,683,618 voters will participate in the general election nextSunday.
The legislative elections in theKurdistan Region have been postponed four times over the past two years due topolitical disputes, having originally been scheduled for 2022.
Since its establishment in the early1990s, the Region has witnessed five parliamentary terms, and this marks thesixth one.