According to Kurdpress, on April 16, 2026, the Kirkuk Provincial Council is scheduled to hold a meeting to review the change in the post of governor of this province; The post that is going to be assigned to the Turkmen Front for the first time.

It was previously announced that this meeting will be held today, Thursday, April 16, at 12:15, and is dedicated to the resignation of Ribwar Taha, the governor of Kirkuk, and the selection of his successor.

Zeman Press wrote: Last night, a number of supporters of the Patriotic Union gathered in front of Ribwar Taha's house in Darwaza neighborhood and expressed their opposition to any change in the post of Kirkuk governor. They also asked five members of the Patriotic Union in the provincial council not to participate in the meeting.

Abdullah Mirwais, a member of the Patriotic Union faction in the Kirkuk Provincial Council, announced in an interview with "Kirkuk Nav": "All the members of the Patriotic Union faction are present in Sulaimaniyah and have a party meeting, that's why they will not participate in today's meeting of the Provincial Council."

On the other hand, some Arab and Turkmen members of the Kirkuk Provincial Council have emphasized that the Patriotic Union agrees with the change of the governor and the appointment of Mohammad Samaan, the head of the Turkmen Front, and this is done within the framework of political agreements for the distribution of posts.

Also, Raad Saleh, an Arab member of the Council, emphasized that this change will be done with the consent of the Patriotic Union and within the framework of political agreements from August 10, 2024, and that Mohammad Samaan is the Turkmen's choice for this post.

After 2003, Kirkuk Provincial Council has held elections only twice: first in 2005 and second after 18 years, in 2023. In the recent elections, the Patriotic Union won 5 seats and the Kurdistan Democratic Party won 2 seats.

In 2024, an agreement was reached at the Rashid Hotel in Baghdad between the Patriotic Union, the Arabs and the Babylon Movement, and as a result, Ribwar Taha was elected as governor with the votes of 9 out of 16 council members.