The final election results from September's Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) vote are in, according to AFP sources. Earlier this week, AFP reported that the Kurdistan's two most prominent parties, the Kurdistan Democratic Party and the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan, finished first and third, respectively. The opposition Gorran movement finished second in the election, claiming 24 seats in the new parliament. No party won a majority of seats in the 111-member legislature with KDP only obtaining 38 as the first-place winner, according to the press conference held to announce the results in Erbil.
Gorran's second place finish has initiated a new era of Kurdish politics, long dominated by KDP and PUK party interests. Previously, the latter two parties participated in the 2009 elections as one joint party. Ahead of the September 21st election, however, Kurdish voters expressed frustration with the previous government's failure to deliver basic services to the people and accused the former KRG of corrupt activities related to oil revenues and expenditures.
