Kurdish opposition groups have denounced widespread irregularities during the elections on Saturday, but the electoral commission of Iraq said that the voting took place under normal conditions. 78.5 percent of Iraq’s Kurds participated in the presidential elections and renewal of the parliament.

It is estimated that the results of the parliamentary and presidential elections in the Kurdish region of northern Iraq will take at least two days to be finalized. It is highly unlikely that the election results will radically alter the dominance of the two powerful political parties in the region. Kurdish President Masoud Barzani, a former guerrilla leader, emerges as a favorite to beat five rivals.

‘Iraqi Kurdistan’s two ruling parties are likely to be confirmed in power despite an unprecedented opposition challenge.’ The ruling parties of the Kurdish Democratic Party (KDP) that is headed by Kurdish President Masoud Barzani, and the Democratic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) of Iraqi President Jalal Talabani, a Kurd, ran a joint ticket against the alliances of smaller parties.

The complaints of the opposition include the reportedly discovered incidences where some voters were allowed to cast their votes without having proper identification, ‘polling stations were blocked to opposition observers,’ and that ‘campaigning took place after deadline’ such as what Barzani did when he spoke to reporters after the campaign deadline.

Iraq’s Independent High Electoral Commission (IHEC) declared that preliminary results of Saturday’s parliamentary and presidential elections will be available by Monday evening. The IHEC also said that it will investigate formal complaints of irregularities during the elections, but assured that the voting took place largely without problems.

Via Reuters