Peoples' Party for Equality and Democracy (DEM Party) Co-Chairs Tülay Hatimoğlulları and Tuncer Bakırhan congratulated the will revealed in Kirkuk, where provincial general assembly elections were held for the first time in 18 years.

The statement released by DEM Party Co-Chairs on Tuesday includes the following:

"We hope that the Iraqi elections, which are very important for the Middle East, will bring democracy, justice and freedom to the peoples of the region. The Kirkuk elections, on which everyone's eyes and ears were focused, were held away from tension and chaos, and the winner was the democratic will of the peoples living in Kirkuk rather than the political parties.

In Kirkuk, where many powers, especially the regional states, have intervened in every way to create social turmoil and political instability, the peoples have demonstrated their democratic will by going to the polls. We congratulate the Kurdish people and all the peoples and beliefs living in Kirkuk on their democratic attitude in the elections held for the first time since 2005.

The will of the people of Kirkuk has given hope to the Middle East against the efforts of the nation-state understanding in the Middle East to rule and destabilise the region by separating the peoples according to their national identities and beliefs within the scope of the divide-and-rule strategy.

We congratulate the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (Yekîtiya Niştimanî ya Kurdistanê) for its election success in Kirkuk. We know that the will of the Kurdish people will be manifested today, as it has been in history, in a way that is based on the peoples of the region and coexistence. We believe that the administration will show the necessary sensitivity for the peoples of Kirkuk to live in a democratic environment with their own identities and beliefs."