The story: A slight majority of Kirkuk’s provincial council has elected a new governor over the objections of several key parties. For the first time since 2017, the post is now held by a Kurd. Multi-ethnic Kirkuk is the last Iraqi governorate to form a local administration following the provincial polls last December. The election of the governor is likely to exacerbate political tensions ahead of upcoming regional and national polls.

The coverage: In a meeting in Baghdad late on Aug. 10, nine of the 16 members of the Kirkuk Provincial Council voted to elect Rebwar Taha of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) as governor. Taha...