The evolution of political settlement in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq and its implications for the governing system

Abstract

The Kurdistan Democratic Party and Patriotic Union of Kurdistan have dominated the semi-autonomous Kurdistan Region since its establishment in 1992, developing formal institutions reflecting their joint governance of the Kurdistan Region of Iraq (KRI). This article argues that these formal institutions are intrinsically designed to protect the interests of the ruling parties rather than to engender the institutionalization process stipulated by the political settlements reached at various stages. The political settlement framework is employed to examine the evolution of political agreements in the KRI and their impacts on governance structures at different periods. This approach helps elucidate how power dynamics and negotiations have shaped the region's political landscape and administrative systems over time. This article demonstrates that the lack of institutionalization of non-partisan formal institutions in the KRI embedded power-sharing structures that reflect the interests of ruling parties, impeding the democratization process.