Ballot stations opened for eligible voters to cast their votes at 7 a.m. on Saturday and will continue until 6 p.m.

A total of 6,990 candidates from 87 parties are competing to win the 329 seats in the Council of Representatives. There are nearly 2,011 female candidates who are guaranteed 25 percent, or 83, of the seats, NRT reported.

Nine seats, including five for Christians, one for Mandarins, one Ezidis, one Shabak and another for Feyli Kurds, will be allocated to minorities.

The main lists can be divided into Shia, Sunni and Kurdish coalitions.

A total of 24 million Iraqis are eligible to cast their votes to elect members of parliament, who will in turn elect the Iraqi President and Prime Minister.

In the Kurdistan Region, up to 3,144,730 people are eligible to cast their votes for the parliamentary election.

Up to 1,305,211 voters can vote in 503 polling stations in Sulaimani. There are 298 polling stations for 1,123,219 voters in Erbil. In Duhok, there are 256 stations for 716,300 voters.

In Kirkuk, up to 956,262 voters can vote in 315 stations for the parliamentary election. Up to 2,039,728 voters can cast their votes in 740 polling stations in Nineveh province. In Diyala province, 466 polling stations are open for 1,104,045 voters.

The parliamentary election will be the first general election since Iraq’s victory over Islamic State in December last year.

The Iraqi constitution sets a 90-day deadline for forming a government after the election results are formally announced.

Reporter’s code: 50101