2015 Rojava local elections
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All 12 municipal councils seats of Dêrik, Girkê Legê, Tirbespiyê, East and West Qamişlo, Amûdê, Dirbêsiyê, Serêkaniyê, Hesekê, Til Koçer, Çilaxa, and Ebu Raseyn. | |
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In the de facto autonomous Rojava region of northern Syria, the first local elections took place on March 13, 2015. The municipal governments in the three predominantly Kurdish cantons Cizîrê, Kobanî and Afrin were to be elected.[3]
Background
[edit]Syrian Kurds declared their own region, Rojava, in November 2013.[4] Following the Cizîre and Kobanî cantons, the Afrin Canton was then established in January 2014.[4]
The YPG’s umbrella organization, the PYD, had declared unilateral autonomy in Rojava in late 2013.[5]
The YPG, backed by the US at the time, had made significant gains in the weeks leading to the elections against the terrorist group ISIS, cutting an important supply route from territory controlled by that group in Iraq.[5] The YPG had emerged as a key partner for the ISIS war in Syria. Backed by Peshmerga fighters and the USA, the YPG defeated ISIS in the Siege of Kobanî in January 2015.[5]
Election
[edit]According to the Rojava High Election Commission, 565 candidates stood for the twelve municipal councils. The polls were opened at 8:00 A.M. and voters were able to cast their votes until 8:00 P.M. in the evening.[6]
160 polling stations were opened[3] across the Cizîrê Canton in the following twelve cities and towns:[7]
- Dêrik
- Girkê Legê
- Tirbespiyê
- East and West Qamişlo
- Amûdê
- Dirbêsiyê
- Serêkaniyê
- Hesekê
- Til Koçer
- Çilaxa
- Ebu Raseyn
Of the 565 candidates, 237 were cited to be women, and apart from the majority being Kurdish, 39 Assyrians, 28 Arabs and one Chechen stood for the election.[7] In Tell Tamer (Girê Xurma), the election had to be postponed as Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) troops attacked the town with mortars.[3]
Reactions
[edit]The Kurdish National Council (KNC) boycotted the elections, and a spokesperson for the Iraqi Kurdistan Regional Government criticized the elections as being in contradiction to the Duhok Agreement. On the other hand, Syrian Information Minister Omran Zoghbi announced that his government considered recognizing the Kurdish autonomy "within the law and constitution."[4]
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ a b Beyond the frontlines – The building of the democratic system in North and East Syria (PDF), Rojava Information Center, 19 December 2019, Wikidata Q136529807, archived (PDF) from the original on 3 October 2025
- ^ a b c "Municipal elections called off in Syrian Tal Tamir because of ISIS fighting". Rûdaw. 14 March 2015. Retrieved 15 March 2015.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link) - ^ a b c "KRG: Elections in Jazira are Not Acceptable". Basnews. 14 March 2015. Retrieved 15 March 2015.
- ^ a b c "Syrian minister: we are ready to negotiate with Kurds". Rudaw. 13 March 2015. Retrieved 30 April 2026.
- ^ Bic0475 (2015-03-27). "Rojava Goes To The Polls". Koerdisch Instituut Brussel. Retrieved 2026-04-30.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) - ^ a b "Rojava Goes To The Polls". The Rojava Report. 14 March 2015. Retrieved 15 March 2015.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link)
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