Kurdish Policy Analysis

KRG Breaks Government Formation Record as Parliament Remains Frozen

More than 650 days after elections, the Kurdistan Region has neither a functioning parliament nor a new government. Is this becoming the KRG's new political normal?

More than 650 days after the Kurdistan Region's election, Iraq's only federal region is operating without a functioning parliament while an outgoing government continues to exercise full executive authority.

The Kurdistan Region has entered unprecedented constitutional territory.

More than 650 days have passed since parliamentary elections were held, yet the Region still has neither a fully functioning parliament nor a newly formed government. In doing so, the Kurdistan Region has surpassed even the recent political deadlock in Belgium's Brussels-Capital Region, which went more than 600 days without a government.

Yet the comparison only goes so far.

Unlike Belgium, where democratic institutions continued to operate under caretaker arrangements, the Kurdistan Region presents a far more unusual constitutional picture: an outgoing cabinet continues to exercise virtually all executive powers while refusing to formally acknowledge caretaker status, and the newly elected parliament has effectively ceased to function after a single inaugural session.

A Government Without a New Mandate

Iraq's Federal Supreme Court has repeatedly established that once elections are held and the previous parliamentary mandate expires, governments transition into caretaker administrations with limited authority.

In the Kurdistan Region, however, the outgoing Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) continues to govern with almost no practical restrictions.

This creates an unusual constitutional paradox.

The government no longer derives political legitimacy from the previous parliament, yet it continues exercising broad executive authority without the legal and political limitations normally associated with caretaker governments.

Parliament Exists Only on Paper

The newly elected Kurdistan Parliament convened only once in January 2025.

Members took the constitutional oath.

Nothing else followed.

No speaker was elected.

No parliamentary committees were formed.

No legislation has been passed.

No ministers have been questioned.

No oversight has taken place.

Technically, the parliamentary session remains open.

Politically, however, the legislature has been absent for nearly two years.

The Kurdistan Region therefore finds itself governed without meaningful legislative scrutiny—a rare situation in any parliamentary democracy.

Why Institutions Have Stopped Functioning

The current crisis reflects a deeper structural reality.

The Kurdistan Region's formal institutions often operate beneath a political system dominated by the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) and the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK).

Major political decisions are generally negotiated between the two parties before state institutions formalize them.

When consensus breaks down, institutions themselves become largely inactive.

This pattern is not new.

In 2015, during the dispute surrounding then-President Masoud Barzani's term, parliamentary Speaker Yusuf Mohammed was prevented from entering Erbil, effectively suspending parliament for almost three years.

Today's deadlock follows the same institutional logic, although the balance of power between the two ruling parties has evolved.

The PUK's Growing Strategic Position

While the KDP has traditionally dominated oil production and exports, the PUK has significantly strengthened its position in recent years.

The rapid expansion of natural gas production within territories under PUK influence has altered the region's internal balance of power.

As natural gas becomes increasingly central to regional energy security, the PUK now controls assets with strategic importance comparable to the KDP's traditional oil leverage.

This growing energy influence has reinforced the PUK's negotiating position in government formation talks.

Two Political Systems Inside One Region

The institutional division extends well beyond politics.

Each party maintains its own:

• Intelligence services

• Security forces

• Counter-terrorism structures

• Fuel distribution systems

• Revenue collection mechanisms

• Regulatory authorities

Even routine administrative functions—including mandatory commercial lift inspections—are handled through separate private companies operating under different party-controlled systems.

Rather than functioning as one integrated regional administration, many governance functions operate in parallel according to territorial control.

Why International Pressure Has Declined

Another important factor behind the prolonged stalemate is the changing posture of the United States.

Washington's recent regional strategy has shifted away from governance reform and institution-building toward more narrowly defined strategic interests.

Energy cooperation.

Counter-terrorism.

Regional stability.

In each of these areas, U.S. officials already engage directly with the KDP and the PUK through long-established relationships.

As a result, a unified regional cabinet has become less essential to achieving Washington's current priorities.

Unlike previous years, external actors now have fewer incentives to pressure Kurdish leaders toward a political settlement.

The New Normal?

Absent significant domestic compromise or renewed international pressure, there are few indications that the current impasse will end soon.

The most likely outcome is that the Kurdistan Region continues operating under an outgoing government while its parliament remains effectively dormant—possibly until the next election or beyond.

If so, the Kurdistan Region may be establishing a new political precedent: a system in which governance continues without either a functioning legislature or a formally recognized caretaker government.

That would represent one of the most unusual constitutional arrangements anywhere in the democratic world.