IHEC sets July 25 for parliamentary, presidential elections in Kurdistan

ARBIL / IraqiNews.com: The Head of the Independent High Electoral Commission in Arbil, Farag al-Haydari, on Wednesday announced that July 25 is the date of holding the parliamentary elections in Kurdistan and to elect the president of the region “July 25 will witness two electoral processes to elect members of the parliament in Kurdistan and the president of the region,” al-Haydari said at a press conference in Arbil attended by IraqiNews.com news agency. “The IHEC is ready to hold the elections and has no problems,” he added. “The UN and the Arab league as well as other countries expressed readiness to supervise the elections process in the region,” he explained. The President of Iraq’s Kurdistan Massoud al-Barzani had set July 25 as the date for parliamentary elections in the region. “I call on everyone to respect the political diversity and urge the people of Kurdistan to widely participate in the elections”, Barzani said in a speech before the Parliament. The president also called on government institutions to cooperate with the Independent High Electoral Commission (IHEC) to “render the electoral process a success.” Parliamentary polls in autonomous region were scheduled to be held on May 19, but were postponed due to the Parliament’s endorsement of the amended law on elections. SH (S) 1