Press Poll Ranks Rebwar Taha as Iraq’s Top Kurdish Governor

Rebwar Taha's Facebook Page

Kirkuk Governor Rebwar Taha.

According to a poll conducted by a media organisation in the Kurdistan Region, Kirkuk Governor Rebwar Taha is leading by a wide margin as the best Kurdish governor in Iraq, although the poll has not yet concluded.

The poll, conducted by the Rudaw Media Network on its Facebook page under the title “Which Governor in Southern Kurdistan Was the Best in 2025?”, compares the performance of the governors of Erbil, Sulaymaniyah, Duhok, Halabja and Kirkuk. Early results show Kirkuk Governor Rebwar Taha leading decisively, with no close competitor.

Within six hours of the poll’s launch, more than 13,000 people had participated, with over 90 percent voting in favour of Rebwar Taha as the best-performing Kurdish governor.

Taha, who heads the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) bloc in the Kirkuk constituency, also ranked first nationwide in the Iraqi parliamentary elections held last November, securing more than 96,000 votes. In a recent post on social media, prominent Iraqi journalist Mona Sami wrote: “If the will of the voters were respected, Rebwar Taha would be prime minister.”

The Kirkuk Provincial Council was elected on 10 August 2024, and Rebwar Taha, leader of the “Kirkuk is Our Strength and Will” bloc, was subsequently elected Governor of Kirkuk. His bloc achieved the highest share of votes in the Iraqi provincial council elections held on 18 December 2023, winning 43 percent of the total votes cast in the province.

Although only a short period has passed over his appointment, Taha has overseen the implementation of a number of service and strategic projects in Kirkuk, despite the limited budget allocated to the province by the federal government.

Who is the Governor of Kirkuk?

- Rebwar Taha Mustafa Ahmed

- Born in 1981 in the Azadi neighbourhood of Kirkuk

- Completed his primary, intermediate and secondary education in Kirkuk

- Holds a bachelor’s degree in English, a bachelor’s degree in law, and a diploma in business administration from Kirkuk Technical University

- Worked in security and counter-terrorism roles following the liberation of Iraq until 2014

- Elected in 2014 to the Iraqi parliament for the first time and served as a member of the Parliamentary Integrity Committee

- Played a key role in protecting citizens and their property following the referendum and the events of 11 October, refusing to leave the city

- Re-elected in 2018 for a second parliamentary term and served as Vice-Chairman of the Parliamentary Oil and Energy Committee

- Headed the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) list in the parliamentary elections

- Elected Vice-Chairman of the committee responsible for drafting the Iraqi Parliament’s internal regulations

- Actively defended the rights of the people of Kurdistan and Kirkuk during his third and fourth parliamentary terms

- Elected as a senior member of the PUK at its fourth and fifth general congresses

- Participated in numerous political conferences, seminars, training courses and workshops abroad on parliamentary administration and governance

- Ran in the 2023 Kirkuk Provincial Council elections as head of the “Kirkuk is Our Strength and Will” list and was elected as a council member

- Fluent in Kurdish, Arabic and English



PUKMEDIA