Women's quota met in northern Iraq polls
Shafaq News – Al-Sulaymaniyah / Nineveh
Iraq’s Independent High Electoral Commission (IHEC) announced on Thursday that five women won parliamentary seats in al-Sulaymaniyah through direct votes, while eight women in Nineveh secured seats through the women’s quota system.
According to IHEC documents, all winners in al-Sulaymaniyah earned their seats outright after collecting a combined 54,978 votes, eliminating the need for quota allocation.
In Nineveh, meanwhile, the eight successful candidates filled quota-designated seats and came from eight different lists, including the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) and Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani’s al-Ima'ar Wal Tanmiya (Reconstruction and Development) coalition.
Under Iraqi law, women must hold at least 25% of parliament’s 329 seats. The quota activates when female candidates do not secure enough seats through direct voting.
Iraq concluded its sixth parliamentary elections since 2003 on November 11, with IHEC reporting national turnout above 56%. Final tallies showed al-Sudani’s coalition leading in eight provinces with 45 seats.
IHEC is now preparing the certified results for submission to the Federal Supreme Court. Once ratified, parliament will elect a president, who will then nominate a prime minister-designate to begin forming the next government.
