The first Rojava regional elections were held on 1 December 2017. Local councils for the Jazira Region, Euphrates Region and Afrin Region were elected as well as for the subordinate cantons, areas and districts of the regions of Rojava. This followed the communal elections that were held on 22 September and was to be followed by a federal parliamentary election of the Syrian Democratic Council, the region's highest governing body, initially scheduled for January 2018, but was later postponed.[2]
Preparations
The election was chiefly organized by the High Electoral Commission (Arabic: المفوضية العليا للانتخابات; Kurdish: Komseriya Bilind Ya Hilbijartinan; Classical Syriac: ܦܩܝܕܳܝܘܬ݂ܐ ܥܠܝܬܐ ܕܓܘܒܳܝ̈ܐ) of the Democratic Federation of Northern Syria.[3]
Over 30 parties and entities with more than 5600 candidates competed for posts in the local councils of the three regions of the DFNS as well as for the region's subordinate cantons, areas and districts. There were 3048 candidates in the Jazira Region (with 102 rejected by the Electoral Commission), 1170 candidates in the Euphrates Region (with four candidates rejected) and 1502 candidates in the Afrin Region (with 48 candidates rejected).[4][5] The Kurdish National Council (KNC) boycotted the elections.[6] DFNS co-president Hediya Yousef called the boycott "irresponsible".[7]
The Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) sent 13 observers for the elections, among them Kurdistan Democratic Party politicians. This was seen by observers as an indication of an improvement of the previously poor relations between the DFNS and the KRG.[7]
Parties and electoral lists
There were two main electoral lists competing in the election, the Democratic Nation List (Arabic: قائمة الأمة الديمقراطية; Kurdish: Lîsta Netewa Demokratîk; Classical Syriac: ܩܝܡܬܐ ܕܐܘܡܬܐ ܕܝܡܩܪܛܝܬܐ), which consists of 18 parties, and the Kurdish National Alliance in Syria (Arabic: التحالف الوطني الكردي في سوريا; Kurdish: Hevbendiya Niştimanî a Kurdî li Sûriyê), which consists of four. In addition to these two electoral alliances, the Syrian National Democratic Alliance also ran. There was also a separate list of independent candidates.[4]
Kurdish Democratic Unity Party in Syria (Democratic Yekîtî - PYDKS): 6,12%, 72 seats (out of 197 candidates running).
Syrian National Democratic Alliance: 0,68%, 8 seats (out of 48 candidates running).
Independents: 3,40%, 40 seats (out of 86 candidates running).
Reactions
National Coalition for Syrian Revolutionary and Opposition Forces - Fawwaz al-Mufflih, an official of the Syrian Revolution and Opposition Forces' Hasakah branch, called the elections a "farce" that "will vanish after the regime falls." He also claimed that most Arabs in Rojava opposed the elections.[6]
