Kurdish opposition parties struggle to unite ahead of Iraq's November elections

Kurdish opposition parties in Iraq's autonomous Kurdistan Region are facing mounting challenges in forming a united electoral front ahead of Iraq's 11 November parliamentary elections, even as the country's election body has extended the deadline for political alliance registration.

On Tuesday, Iraq's Independent High Electoral Commission (IHEC) granted a final extension for registering coalitions and parties until the end of working hours on 22 May. But despite weeks of talks, a coalition of six Kurdish opposition parties has yet to materialise.

The six Kurdish opposition groups—the New Generation Movement (NGM), the Kurdistan Islamic Union (KIU), the Kurdistan Justice Group (KJG), the National Stance Movement, the People's Front led by Lahur Sheikh Jangi, and the Islamic Group of Kurdistan (Komal)—have been holding talks since early May to build a coalition. They aim to present a credible alternative to the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) and the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK), the region's two ruling parties, which have long dominated Kurdish politics and maintained a near-monopoly on power in Baghdad.

These discussions, however, have thus far yielded little progress due to mutual mistrust, diverging political ambitions, and accusations of secret dealings with federal parties in Baghdad.

"We, as the KIU, are for the formation of an alliance among the Kurdistan opposition parties for the upcoming elections for Iraq's Council of Representatives," Salahaddin Babakir, secretary of the KIU's politburo, told The New Arab. "We had a similar view for the Kurdistan Region's October parliamentary elections. Unfortunately, our efforts for the Kurdistan elections were not successful."

"We have made several meetings with the KJG and other opposition parties; the meetings are ongoing, but so far we could not form a joint list for the November elections," he added.

Omar Gulpi, a lawmaker from the KJG in the Iraqi Kurdistan parliament, echoed Babakir's sentiment, expressing a shared desire for cooperation.

"The meetings are ongoing. We have made extensive efforts to form a joint list, especially with the KIU. We have mutual understandings, but certain opposition parties try to foil the efforts," he said. "We will continue with our efforts to form the joint list, at least among three or four of the opposition parties."

However, tensions among the groups became evident when Ali Hama Salih, leader of the National Stance Movement, announced during a press conference on 11 May that his party was pulling out of the talks. He accused some factions—particularly the New Generation Movement—of engaging in separate negotiations in Baghdad to secure government positions after the elections.

The New Generation Movement, led by businessman-turned-politician Shaswar Abdulwahid, declined to respond to the accusations. Himdad Shaheen, an NGM spokesperson, refused to provide any comment to TNA. 

Rebwar Karim, a former Iraqi MP and senior figure in the National Stance Movement, clarified that they had not completely withdrawn from the talks but had raised concerns. "We had notes on whether the efforts are toward forming a temporary joint list for the elections or a permanent coalition among the Kurdish opposition parties," he said.

The divisions among Kurdish opposition parties come amid a broader political impasse in the Iraqi Kurdistan Region. Months after the 25 October 2024 regional elections, the Kurdish Parliament remains paralysed. The chamber has failed to elect a new speaker or form a government, prompting calls to dissolve the body and hold fresh elections in parallel with the federal vote.

On 1 May, acting speaker Mohammed Sulaiman from the New Generation Movement, which won 15 seats, declared the Kurdistan Parliament dissolved, citing its failure to fulfil constitutional obligations. In a letter to President Nechirvan Barzani, he requested a formal decree to that effect, arguing that the chamber had not elected a leadership team within the 45-day deadline stipulated by Kurdish law.

The KDP and PUK rejected the dissolution as a unilateral and legally baseless act. Yet according to the law, the president may dissolve the parliament if it cannot reach a quorum or perform its duties within the required timeframe. The parliament last met on 3 December 2024, but has since remained inactive as the KDP and PUK boycotted further sessions.

In response to the crisis, the KJG and NGM have filed lawsuits at Iraq's Supreme Federal Court seeking to annul the October election results and formally dissolve the legislature.

Meanwhile, Kurdistan Region Deputy Prime Minister Qubad Talabani announced on 19 May that the PUK and KDP will contest Iraq's federal elections separately, though they are continuing discussions to form the Region's long-overdue tenth cabinet.

"We have decided not to unite under a single list. Instead, each [party] will run with its own list," Talabani said at a press conference in Sulaimaniyah. "From what I understood in the previous meeting [with the KDP], it may be better for everyone to participate with their own list."

Talks between the two ruling parties have been underway since November to form a new government following the October 2024 vote, in which the KDP secured 39 seats and the PUK 23 in the 100-member Kurdish legislature.

IHEC has confirmed that candidate registration for the federal elections will open on 25 May and remain open until 24 June. Whether the Kurdish opposition can resolve their internal rifts and capitalise on the political deadlock remains to be seen.