1992 Kurdistan Region general election

1992 Kurdistan Region general election
19 May 1992
	Presidential election
2009 →
	Elected President ; None; Position abolished;
	National Assembly election
2005 →
	All 105 seats in the Kurdistan National Assembly; 53 seats needed for a majority
Assyrian seats
	Results by governorate
	Fuad Masum; PUK

The 1992 Kurdistan Region general election was held in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq on 19 May 1992 to elect the president and the 105 members of the Kurdistan National Assembly. It was the first free and fair election in the history of the Kurdistan Region, held just one year after the 1991 Kurdish uprisings against the Ba’ath regime.^[1] The elections had initially been planned for 16 May,^[2] but were delayed due to concerns about ink smudging, which could have led to voter fraud.^[3]

The elections took place under the protection of a no-fly zone established by many countries, including the US, UK, and France.^[1]

Presidential election

In the first round of the presidential election, Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) leader Massoud Barzani received slightly more votes than his main rival, Jalal Talabani, the leader of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK). With neither candidate receiving an absolute majority of the vote,^[4] a second round was scheduled to be held. However, both leaders feared they might lose in a run-off, so the second round was never held, and the Kurdistan Regional Government decided to proceed without a president.^[5] Instead they established an eight-member Presidency Council consisting of four members from each party.^[6]

Parliamentary election

The Kurdistan National Assembly election resulted in a narrow victory for the KDP, which won 51 seats, while the PUK-led alliance won 49 seats. However, due to fraud allegations, the KDP gave up one seat to the PUK so that each party would hold 50 seats. The two parties then proceeded to form a unity government.^[7]^[8]

On 4 June 1992, KDP Secretary General Jawhar Namiq Salim was elected Speaker of the Kurdistan National Assembly and prominent PUK member Fuad Masum was elected Prime Minister of Kurdistan Region.^[2]^[7]^[8]

The Kurdistan National Assembly convened for the first time on 15 July 1992 and passed Law No. 1, which established the Assembly as the region’s legislature.^[1]

Aftermath

The government lasted until May 1994, when the Kurdish Civil War broke out. The war lasted until 1998, after which the Kurdistan Region was divided into a PUK-controlled zone in the southeast and a KDP-controlled zone in the northwest.^[4]

Due to the civil war in the region, no new elections were held until 2005. The first term of parliament, which was supposed to last three years, ended up lasting 10 years, from 1992 to 2002.^[1]^[2] The next election was held in 2005, alongside the Iraqi parliamentary election.^[9]

Electoral system

The president was elected using the two-round system; if no candidate received a majority of the vote, a second round would be held.

Of the 105 seats in the National Assembly, 100 were general seats elected by proportional representation with a 7% electoral threshold. Five seats were reserved for the Assyrian minority. There were 178 polling stations.^[10]

Conduct

The elections were described as free and fair by international observers.^[11]^[12] Amnesty International reports that some smaller parties alleged irregularities.^[13]

Results

President


Candidate		Party	Votes	%
	Masoud Barzani	Kurdistan Democratic Party	466,819	48.12
	Jalal Talabani	Patriotic Union of Kurdistan	441,057	45.47
	Osman Abdulaziz	Kurdistan Islamic Movement	38,865	4.01
	Mahmoud Othman	Kurdistan Socialist Party	23,309	2.40
Total			970,050	100.00

Valid votes			970,050	98.72
Invalid/blank votes			12,599	1.28
Total votes			982,649	100.00
Source: Wanche, Dahlman

National Assembly


Party		Votes	%	Seats
	Kurdistan Democratic Party	437,879	45.27	51
	Patriotic Union of Kurdistan^[a]	423,833	43.82	49
	Kurdistan Islamic Movement	49,108	5.08	0
	Kurdistan Socialist Party	24,882	2.57	0
	Iraqi Communist Party	21,123	2.18	0
	Kurdistan Popular Democratic Party	9,903	1.02	0
	Independent Democrats	501	0.05	0
Total		967,229	100.00	100

Valid votes		967,229	99.51
Invalid/blank votes		4,724	0.49
Total votes		971,953	100.00
Assyrian seats
	Assyrian Democratic Movement	6,543	54.66	4
	Kurdistan Christian Unity	2,757	23.03	1
	Khaldu-Ashur Communist Party	2,134	17.83	0
	Democratic Christians	537	4.49	0
Total		11,971	100.00	5

Source: Dahlman

By governorate

Dahuk Governorate


Party		Votes	%
	Kurdistan Democratic Party	168,683	85.47
	Patriotic Union of Kurdistan	15,184	7.69
	Kurdistan Popular Democratic Party	6,051	3.07
	Kurdistan Islamic Movement	3,874	1.96
	Kurdistan Socialist Party	1,983	1.00
	Iraqi Communist Party	1,546	0.78
	Independent Democrats	49	0.02
Total		197,370	100.00

Note: Dahuk included the Aqrah and Shekhan Districts which were officially part of Nineveh Governorate.

Erbil Governorate


Party		Votes	%
	Kurdistan Democratic Party	152,143	45.58
	Patriotic Union of Kurdistan	148,352	44.44
	Kurdistan Islamic Movement	11,092	3.32
	Iraqi Communist Party	11,047	3.31
	Kurdistan Socialist Party	8,883	2.66
	Kurdistan Popular Democratic Party	2,101	0.63
	Independent Democrats	184	0.06
Total		333,802	100.00

Note: The Makhmour district was at this time still under control of the Iraqi government, no elections were held there.

As Sulaymaniya Governorate


Party		Votes	%
	Patriotic Union of Kurdistan	207,168	59.54
	Kurdistan Democratic Party	92,449	26.57
	Kurdistan Islamic Movement	29,334	8.43
	Kurdistan Socialist Party	11,978	3.44
	Iraqi Communist Party	5,693	1.64
	Kurdistan Popular Democratic Party	1,118	0.32
	Independent Democrats	213	0.06
Total		347,953	100.00

Diyala Governorate


Party		Votes	%
	Patriotic Union of Kurdistan	53,129	60.28
	Kurdistan Democratic Party	24,604	27.92
	Kurdistan Islamic Movement	4,808	5.46
	Iraqi Communist Party	2,837	3.22
	Kurdistan Socialist Party	2,038	2.31
	Kurdistan Popular Democratic Party	663	0.75
	Independent Democrats	55	0.06
Total		88,134	100.00

Only two areas in the Diyala Governorate were under Kurdish control: Darbandikhan and Khanaqin.

Notes

↑ Including the Struggle Party and the Kurdistan Toilers' Party, which won four seats^[14]

References

1 2 3 4 "History of Parliament". Kurdistan Parliament - Iraq. Retrieved 2026-04-15.
1 2 3 "Chronology for Kurds in Iraq". UNHCR. Minorities at Risk Project. 2004. Archived from the original on 20 September 2013. Retrieved 22 January 2025.
↑ Randal, Jonathan C (16 May 1992). "Fading ink delays Iraqi Kurds' vote". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on 22 January 2025. Retrieved 22 January 2025.
1 2 The 2009 Kurdish Elections Archived 2026-06-25 at the Wayback Machine, July 23, 2009
↑ Galbraith, Peter (2006), The End of Iraq: How American Incompetence Created a War without End; Simon and Schuster. ISBN 0-7432-9423-8
↑ Page 3
1 2 "Thirty-three years pass since first parliamentary elections in Kurdistan Region". 964media. 2025-05-19. Retrieved 2026-04-15.
1 2 "Parl". www.knn.u-net.com. Archived from the original on 2014-07-14. Retrieved 2026-04-15.
↑ Kurdistan24 (2024-10-18). "Glance at parliamentary election history in Kurdistan Region". Glance at parliamentary election history in Kurdistan Region. Retrieved 2026-04-15.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
↑ Iraqi Kurdistan Political Development and Emergent Democracy By Gareth R V Stansfield, Inc NetLibrary. page 129.
↑ Backer, Ralf; Ofteringer, Ronald (April 1994). "A Republic of Statelessness". Middle East Research and Information Project. No. 187-188 (March/April 1994). Archived from the original on 2 July 2022. Retrieved 22 January 2025.
↑ O'Leary, Carole A (December 2002). "The Kurds of Iraq: Recent History, Future Prospects". Middle East Review of International Affairs. 6 (4) – via Columbia University.
↑ Iraq: Human rights abuses in Iraqi Kurdistan since 1991. Amnesty International. 28 February 1995. p. 16. Archived from the original on 2 January 2020. Retrieved 22 January 2025.
↑ http://www.knn.u-net.com/parlim~1.htm

External links

Kurdistan National Assembly Parliament

[15] Including the Struggle Party and the Kurdistan Toilers' Party, which won four seats^[14]

[:0-1] 1 2 3 4 "History of Parliament". Kurdistan Parliament - Iraq. Retrieved 2026-04-15.

[:1-2] 1 2 3 "Chronology for Kurds in Iraq". UNHCR. Minorities at Risk Project. 2004. Archived from the original on 20 September 2013. Retrieved 22 January 2025.

[3] Randal, Jonathan C (16 May 1992). "Fading ink delays Iraqi Kurds' vote". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on 22 January 2025. Retrieved 22 January 2025.

[understandingwar-4] 1 2 The 2009 Kurdish Elections Archived 2026-06-25 at the Wayback Machine, July 23, 2009

[End_of_Iraq-5] Galbraith, Peter (2006), The End of Iraq: How American Incompetence Created a War without End; Simon and Schuster. ISBN 0-7432-9423-8

[6] Page 3

[:2-7] 1 2 "Thirty-three years pass since first parliamentary elections in Kurdistan Region". 964media. 2025-05-19. Retrieved 2026-04-15.

[:3-8] 1 2 "Parl". www.knn.u-net.com. Archived from the original on 2014-07-14. Retrieved 2026-04-15.

[9] Kurdistan24 (2024-10-18). "Glance at parliamentary election history in Kurdistan Region". Glance at parliamentary election history in Kurdistan Region. Retrieved 2026-04-15.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)

[10] Iraqi Kurdistan Political Development and Emergent Democracy By Gareth R V Stansfield, Inc NetLibrary. page 129.

[11] Backer, Ralf; Ofteringer, Ronald (April 1994). "A Republic of Statelessness". Middle East Research and Information Project. No. 187-188 (March/April 1994). Archived from the original on 2 July 2022. Retrieved 22 January 2025.

[12] O'Leary, Carole A (December 2002). "The Kurds of Iraq: Recent History, Future Prospects". Middle East Review of International Affairs. 6 (4) – via Columbia University.

[13] Iraq: Human rights abuses in Iraqi Kurdistan since 1991. Amnesty International. 28 February 1995. p. 16. Archived from the original on 2 January 2020. Retrieved 22 January 2025.

[14] ttp://www.knn.u-net.com/parlim~1.htm

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