Opinion poll predicts KDP and PUK decline

According to a poll, the two Kurdish parties KDP and PUK will lose 11 seats in the May 12 elections, retaining some 17 deputies.

CSIS, one of the US' most serious research institutions, conducted a survey on Iraqi parliamentary elections.

Analysing the survey results, CSIS estimated that in South Kurdistan there will be a participation rate of 60 percent while in Iraq overall the rate will be of 55 percent.

According to the poll, the two Kurdish parties KDP and PUK will lose 11 seats in the May 12 elections, retaining some 17 deputies.

A total of 44 deputies from South Kurdistan were sent to the Iraqi parliament in the 2017 elections. 28 of them were elected within the KDP and PUK lists.

The survey results show that the two parties will lose up to 40 percent of their vote.

The poll further shows that Komalê Islami, Goran and Behrem Salih's Coalition for Democracy and Justice seem likely to gain a total of 7 deputies.

If the result will be confirmed on 12 May, it would mean that the parties will have lost 5 seats. The Yekgirtu party, which had elected 4 deputies at the previous elections, will lose 2.

The CSIS survey predicts that the main beneficiary of these elections will be the Neway Nu's list, which appears set to elect 17 deputies.

Here are the predictions of the CSIS for the new Iraqi Parliament:

Nasser list, headed by Prime Minister Haider Al-Abadi, will gain 72 seats, Hadi Amri's list will gain 37 seats, former Prime Minister Nuri Maliki's list 19 seats.