Can democracy survive in Kurdistan?
Iraqi Kurdistan’s parliamentary and presidential elections have given birth to a viable opposition group for the first time since the autonomous Kurdish region was established in 1991. Kurdish politics has traditionally been dominated by the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan, led by Iraqi president Jalal Talabani, and the Kurdistan Democratic party, led by Kurdistan region president Massoud Barzani. But the results of last month’s election show that the PUK and KDP alliance received only 57% of the total votes – a dramatic decline from the previous election in 2005, when they won more than 85%. The decline might have been even more severe had it not been for some unprecedentedly vigorous campaigning by PUK officials like Barham Salih and KDP officials like Masrour Barzani (son of Massoud Barzani and potentially a future party leader). The Change list, which campaigned on an anti-corruption and public services platform, won an unexpected 24% and other opposition groups got at least 15%. The
