Shafaq News/ The Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK)nominated Awat Mohammed as the leading candidate for the position of KurdistanRegion’s Al-Sulaymaniyah governor, replacing Haval Abu Bakr, sources said onSaturday.
The sources told Shafaq News that the PUK has two possibleroutes to reclaim positions from the Change Movement (Gorran). The firstinvolves the expiration of the Al-Sulaymaniyah Provincial Council's term, whichwas previously governed by a power-sharing arrangement between the two parties.
Under this deal, the governor and council president rolesalternated every two years, with other executive positions allocated throughcouncil votes. “With the council currently absent, the governor's position isnow up for renegotiation.”
The second path, according to the sources, stems from “theweakening of the Gorran Movement.” Once, Gorran held 12 seats in theAl-Sulaymaniyah Council, compared to 11 for the PUK, and 24 seats in theKurdistan Parliament, against 18 for the PUK, making it the second strongestpolitical force in the Region.
However, the movement now has only one seat in theparliament, and “has split into two factions, greatly diminishing its politicalstrength,” they explained.