Shafaq News/ The Independent High Electoral Commission (IHEC) of Iraq on Tuesday announced the opening and closing times for polling stations for the upcoming Kurdistan Region parliamentary elections.

In a statement, the commission reminded alliances, parties, candidates, their representatives, voters, observers, and the media that polling stations for the 2024 Kurdistan Parliament elections will open at 7:00 am and close at 6:00 pm.

“The special voting will take place on Friday, October 18, 2024, while the general voting is scheduled for Sunday, October 20, 2024.”

The commission affirmed that no extensions to polling hours will be granted, as the opening and closing of the stations will be conducted electronically.

It also confirmed that “voting will be permitted only with biometric voter cards.”

Additionally, under the decision of the Higher Security Committee, mobile phones and cameras will be prohibited inside polling stations, except for media-designated centers.

It is noteworthy that in June, President Barzani issued a Regional decree setting October 20, 2024, as the official date for the Kurdistan parliamentary elections.

The October vote is expected to elect 100 new lawmakers representing the governorates of Iraqi Kurdistan: Erbil (34 seats, including one for Christians and one for Turkmen), Halabja (three seats), Al-Sulaymaniyah (38 seats, including one for Christians and one for Turkmen), and Duhok (25 seats, including one for Christians).

According to the Electoral Commission, a total of 1,190 candidates are running in the upcoming elections. These candidates are distributed across two coalitions, 13 parties, and include 85 independents, alongside 39 candidates representing minority groups, forming a total of 139 electoral lists.

The overall number of eligible voters amounts to 2,899,878. Of this total, 2,683,618 are registered for general voting, while 215,960 are listed for special voting.