1992 Kurdistan Region general election

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1992 Kurdistan Region general election
Flag of Kurdistan.svg
19 May 1992
Presidential election
2009  →
  Mesud Barzani.jpg Jalal Talabani.jpg
Candidate Massoud Barzani Jalal Talabani
Party KDP PUK
Popular vote466,819423,833
Percentage48.09%43.82%
Elected President

None
Position abolished

National Assembly election
2005  →
All 105 seats in the Kurdistan National Assembly
53 seats needed for a majority
PartyLeaderVote %Seats
KDP Massoud Barzani 45.2751
PUK Jalal Talabani 43.8249
Assyrian seats
ADM Ninos Pithyou 54.664
KCU Sarkis Aghajan 23.031
This lists parties that won seats. See the complete results below.
KDP and PUK controlled areas of Kurdistan.png
Most-voted for party by area
Prime Minister after
Fuad Masum
PUK

General elections were held in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq on 19 May 1992 to elect the president and the 105 members of the Kurdistan National Assembly. The elections had initially been planned for 16 May, [1] but were delayed due to concerns about ink delibility leading to voter fraud. [2]

Contents

In the first round of the presidential election Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) leader Massoud Barzani received slightly more votes than his main rival Jalal Talabani, the leader of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK). With neither receiving a majority of the vote, [3] a second round was due to held. However, due to both leaders fearing they may lose in a run-off, the second round was never held and the Kurdistan Regional Government decided to move on without a president. [4] Instead they established an eight-person Presidency Council consisting of four members from each party. [5]

The National Assembly election resulted in a narrow victory for the KDP, which won 51 seats, while the PUK-led alliance won 49 seats. However, due to fraud allegations KDP gave up one seat to the PUK so that each would have 50 seats, they proceeded to form a unity government. On 4 June 1992 KDP Secretary General Jawhar Namiq Salim was elected Speaker of the Kurdistan National Assembly and prominent PUK member Fuad Masum was elected Prime Minister of Kurdistan Region.

The government lasted until May 1994, when the Kurdish Civil War broke out and lasted until 1998, after which Kurdistan Region was divided into a PUK-controlled zone in the southeast and a KDP-controlled zone in the northwest. [3]

Electoral system

The president was elected using the two-round system; if no candidate received a majority of the vote, a second round would be held.

Of the 105 seats in the National Assembly, 100 were general seats elected by proportional representation with a 7% electoral threshold. Five seats were reserved for the Assyrian minority. There were 178 polling stations. [6]

Conduct

The elections were described as free and fair by international observers. [7] [8] Amnesty International reports that some smaller parties alleged irregularities. [9]

Results

President

CandidatePartyVotes%
Masoud Barzani Kurdistan Democratic Party 466,81948.12
Jalal Talabani Patriotic Union of Kurdistan 441,05745.47
Osman Abdulaziz Kurdistan Islamic Movement 38,8654.01
Mahmoud Othman Kurdistan Socialist Party 23,3092.40
Total970,050100.00
Valid votes970,05098.72
Invalid/blank votes12,5991.28
Total votes982,649100.00
Source: Wanche, Dahlman

National Assembly

PartyVotes%Seats
Kurdistan Democratic Party 437,87945.2751
Patriotic Union of Kurdistan [a] 423,83343.8249
Kurdistan Islamic Movement 49,1085.080
Kurdistan Socialist Party 24,8822.570
Iraqi Communist Party 21,1232.180
Kurdistan Popular Democratic Party9,9031.020
Independent Democrats5010.050
Total967,229100.00100
Valid votes967,22999.51
Invalid/blank votes4,7240.49
Total votes971,953100.00
Assyrian seats
Assyrian Democratic Movement 6,54354.664
Kurdistan Christian Unity2,75723.031
Khaldu-Ashur Communist Party2,13417.830
Democratic Christians5374.490
Total11,971100.005
Source: Dahlman

By governorate

Dahuk Governorate
PartyVotes%
Kurdistan Democratic Party 168,68385.47
Patriotic Union of Kurdistan 15,1847.69
Kurdistan Popular Democratic Party6,0513.07
Kurdistan Islamic Movement 3,8741.96
Kurdistan Socialist Party 1,9831.00
Iraqi Communist Party 1,5460.78
Independent Democrats490.02
Total197,370100.00

Note: Dahuk included the Aqrah and Shekhan Districts which were officially part of Nineveh Governorate.

Erbil Governorate
PartyVotes%
Kurdistan Democratic Party 152,14345.58
Patriotic Union of Kurdistan 148,35244.44
Kurdistan Islamic Movement 11,0923.32
Iraqi Communist Party 11,0473.31
Kurdistan Socialist Party 8,8832.66
Kurdistan Popular Democratic Party2,1010.63
Independent Democrats1840.06
Total333,802100.00

Note: The Makhmour district was at this time still under control of the Iraqi government, no elections were held there.

As Sulaymaniya Governorate
PartyVotes%
Patriotic Union of Kurdistan 207,16859.54
Kurdistan Democratic Party 92,44926.57
Kurdistan Islamic Movement 29,3348.43
Kurdistan Socialist Party 11,9783.44
Iraqi Communist Party 5,6931.64
Kurdistan Popular Democratic Party1,1180.32
Independent Democrats2130.06
Total347,953100.00
Diyala Governorate
PartyVotes%
Patriotic Union of Kurdistan 53,12960.28
Kurdistan Democratic Party 24,60427.92
Kurdistan Islamic Movement 4,8085.46
Iraqi Communist Party 2,8373.22
Kurdistan Socialist Party 2,0382.31
Kurdistan Popular Democratic Party6630.75
Independent Democrats550.06
Total88,134100.00

Only two areas in the Diyala Governorate were under Kurdish control: Darbandikhan and Khanaqin.

Notes

  1. ↑ Including the Struggle Party and the Kurdistan Toilers' Party, which won four seats [10]

References

  1. ↑ "Chronology for Kurds in Iraq". UNHCR . Minorities at Risk Project. 2004. Archived from the original on 20 September 2013. Retrieved 22 January 2025.
  2. ↑ Randal, Jonathan C (16 May 1992). "Fading ink delays Iraqi Kurds' vote". Washington Post . Archived from the original on 22 January 2025. Retrieved 22 January 2025.
  3. 1 2 The 2009 Kurdish Elections Archived 2011-01-06 at the Wayback Machine , July 23, 2009
  4. ↑ Galbraith, Peter (2006), The End of Iraq: How American Incompetence Created a War without End; Simon and Schuster. ISBN   0-7432-9423-8
  5. ↑ Page 3
  6. ↑ Iraqi Kurdistan Political Development and Emergent Democracy By Gareth R V Stansfield, Inc NetLibrary. page 129.
  7. ↑ Backer, Ralf; Ofteringer, Ronald (April 1994). "A Republic of Statelessness". Middle East Research and Information Project . No. 187-188 (March/April 1994). Archived from the original on 2 July 2022. Retrieved 22 January 2025.
  8. ↑ O'Leary, Carole A (December 2002). "The Kurds of Iraq: Recent History, Future Prospects". Middle East Review of International Affairs . 6 (4) – via Columbia University.
  9. ↑ Iraq: Human rights abuses in Iraqi Kurdistan since 1991. Amnesty International. 28 February 1995. p. 16. Archived from the original on 2 January 2020. Retrieved 22 January 2025.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: date and year (link)
  10. ↑


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