Qubad Talabani: Entrust Resolving Erbil–Baghdad Issues to the PUK

Deputy PM's Media

KRG Deputy PM Qubad Talabani among the PUK cadres.

With the start of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) election campaign on Monday, 6 October 2025, Qubad Talabani, Deputy Prime Minister and Supervisor of the Secretariat Bureau of President Mam Jalal, issued a message urging citizens to place their trust in the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) to resolve the ongoing disputes between the Kurdistan Region and the federal government in Baghdad.

“This election is crucial to resolve the issues between the Kurdistan Region and Baghdad,” Talabani said. “The most important question for any voter should be which party is as strong and influential as the PUK in Baghdad to fight for the constitutional rights and financial entitlements of the Kurdish people?”

He stressed that throughout the years, no party other than the PUK has managed to “untie the dead knots” or resolve major problems, particularly in times of crisis. “Therefore, we call on the Kurdish people to entrust Baghdad to the PUK to resolve the issues between the Kurdistan Region and the federal government,” he added.

As part of the first stage of the PUK election campaign in Erbil, Qubad Talabani met with officials and cadres of the PUK in Erbil. He called on them to work tirelessly to explain to the people of Erbil why they should vote for PUK List 222 in the upcoming election.

Meanwhile, PUK President Bafel Jalal Talabani officially launched the party’s election campaign ahead of the Iraqi parliamentary elections, declaring that “only the PUK has influence in Baghdad and can safeguard Iraq’s unity.”

The PUK is contesting the 2025 Iraqi parliamentary elections, scheduled for 11 November, across several governorates, presenting its candidates on an independent list numbered 222 in Erbil, Sulaymaniyah (including Halabja), Duhok, Kirkuk, and Diyala. In Nineveh Governorate, the PUK is running as part of the "Nineveh People’s Union Coalition" with list number 281, while in Saladin it is fielding one candidate within the "National Masses Coalition" with list number 240.

Overall, the PUK is entering the elections with 156 candidates: 36 in Sulaymaniyah, 30 in Erbil, 5 in Duhok, 24 in Kirkuk, 28 in Diyala, 31 in Nineveh within the Nineveh People’s Union coalition, and one candidate each in Saladin and Baghdad.



PUKMEDIA