The Iraqi parliament voted on Monday morning on the third amendment to the electoral law, which requires provincial council elections to be held on the basis of Sainte-Laguë election system with a 1.7 divisor before the end of this year.
The law consists of 15 articles that define the procedures for conducting both elections of the provincial councils and parliament.
During the parliament session, 70 independent MPs and members of some factions protested against the law and tried to stop the session during the vote on the amendment to the electoral law, so the speaker of the House of Representatives tried to take them out of the session.
Srwa Mohammed, a member of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) faction, told Kurdsat News that his faction did not agree with the provisions set for the electoral process in Kirkuk, which is why they didn't vote in favor of the amendment.
According to the amendment, the elections in Kirkuk will be held on the same day as in other Iraqi provinces, but the voter registration must be reviewed based on the 1957 census and several other changes will be made in Kirkuk.
The session, which was attended by 189 MPs, approved all the amendments to the parliamentary and provincial council elections law.
According to Articles 2, 6 and 7 of the law, the provincial council elections must be held before 20/12/2023, while the next sessions must be held 45 days before the expiration of the term of the provincial councils.
The law also sets the conditions for running for parliamentary and provincial elections, candidates must be at least 30 years old, hold a bachelor's degree and have no criminal convictions.
The law clarified that the house of representatives consists of 329 seats, including nine for minorities.