Exclusive: PUK sets sights on Kurdistan’s Al-Sulaymaniyah governorship

Shafaq News/ The Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) nominated Awat Mohammed as the leading candidate for the position of Kurdistan Region’s Al-Sulaymaniyah governor, replacing Haval Abu Bakr, sources said on Saturday.

The sources told Shafaq News that the PUK has two possible routes to reclaim positions from the Change Movement (Gorran). The first involves the expiration of the Al-Sulaymaniyah Provincial Council's term, which was previously governed by a power-sharing arrangement between the two parties.

Under this deal, the governor and council president roles alternated every two years, with other executive positions allocated through council votes. “With the council currently absent, the governor's position is now up for renegotiation.”

The second path, according to the sources, stems from “the weakening of the Gorran Movement.” Once, Gorran held 12 seats in the Al-Sulaymaniyah Council, compared to 11 for the PUK, and 24 seats in the Kurdistan Parliament, against 18 for the PUK, making it the second strongest political force in the Region.

However, the movement now has only one seat in the parliament, and “has split into two factions, greatly diminishing its political strength,” they explained.