Top Kurdistan officials welcome Gorran party leader re-election
President Nechirvan Barzani also phoned Ali Said, saying “he is pleased with Mr. Ali’s re-election, praising his role in the Kurdistan political movement,” a statement from the president’s office read. The Gorran leader, in turn, expressed his gratitude for Barzani’s call.
Rewas Fayiq, in a letter, congratulated Ali Said as well, saying “she hopes that this election brings stronger relations between Gorran and all the political parties to work for Kurdistan’s national goals and serving the public.”
In 2009, Gorran entered the political scene of the Kurdistan Region, winning 25 seats in that year’s parliamentary elections. In the vote four years later, they retained 24 seats but entered the government in coalition with leading parties Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) and Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK).
Halfway through the parliamentary term that began in 2013, Gorran’s disputes with the KDP led to it refraining from returning to the legislature. Tensions decreased between the KDP and Gorran ahead of the 2018 elections, and the two arrived at multiple government formation deals following the vote.
The party is currently part of the new participatory Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) cabinet, holding five ministerial posts: Minister of Peshmerga, Finance and Economy, Housing and Reconstruction, Labor and Social Affairs, and Trade and Industries.
The once opposition party, however, has declined in popularity from the time of its conception, halving their 2013 gains in the latest vote, now holding 12 seats in the Kurdistan Parliament.
Editing by Karzan Sulaivany