IHEC Disqualifies 3 More Candidates

Kurdistan 07:06 PM - 2024-09-08

IHEC's logo.

The Iraqi Independent High Electoral Commission (IHEC) has disqualified three more candidates for the sixth term of the Kurdish parliamentary elections, increasing the total number of disqualified candidates to seven. None of these candidates are from of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK).

According to the information available to PUKMEDIA, all PUK candidates met the IHEC's candidacy criteria.

Three more candidates do not meet the IHEC's requirements

In a statement obtained by PUKMEDIA, the IHEC stated that the Commissioners Board declared three candidates running for the sixth term of the Kurdistan parliamentary elections ineligible due to their failure to meet the IHEC's candidacy requirements.

According to the statement, Sherwan Sherwani from the Halwest list in Erbil, Shivan Saeed from the New Generation list in Duhok, and Jaafar Osman from the Gorran list in Sulaymaniyah have been disqualified.

The IHEC called on the parties to submit the names of new candidates within three days in order to remove the disqualified candidates from the election sheet and replace them with the names of the new candidates.

In a statement, the IHEC declared that the candidates were disqualified based on Article 21 of the amended Kurdistan Parliamentary Election Law No. 1 of 1992.

Conditions of candidacy

According to PUKMEDIA's follow-up, the article from which the candidates were disqualified states six conditions for participating in the elections:

First: He/She must be a citizen and resident of Kurdistan.
Second: He/She knows how to read and write well.
Third: He/She must be over 30 years of age and mentally stable.
Fourth: He/She must not have been punished for a disgraceful crime.
Fifth: He/She must not have been convicted of theft or murder.
Sixth: He/She must not have participated in the crimes committed by the Ba'ath Party against the Kurds in Kurdistan.

The IHEC previously disqualified Helin Akram, Haemin Omar, Saman Mahmoud, and Diyari Hidayat for failing to meet the eligibility requirements for candidacy. Three of the candidates belonged to the New Generation, while one was independent.

No PUK candidate was disqualified

The candidates representing the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) in the Kurdistan Parliamentary elections in all four constituencies meet the eligibility requirements and are of good character, with no criminal record.

A source from the PUK's Election Bureau informed PUKMEDIA that all the candidates from the PUK fulfil all the requirements established by the IHEC, and no PUK candidate has been declined.

"Following the scrutiny and evaluation of the candidates by the specialised agencies of Iraq and the Kurdistan Region, all of the PUK candidates have fulfilled the necessary criteria for candidacy and will participate in the elections," the source stated.

The PUK has 172 candidates running in Kurdistan's sixth parliamentary election, which is scheduled for October 20, 2024. 



PUKMEDIA