The Kurdistan Region President is elected under Kurdistan Law 1, Article 1 passed by the Kurdistan Parliament (formerly known as the Kurdistan National Assembly) in 2005. During the life of the regional legislature elected in 2005, the President is elected by the legislature. In future the President is to be directly elected by the people of the Kurdistan region.
Masoud Barzani was elected the first President of the Kurdistan Region by the Kurdistan National Assembly on 31 January 2005. He was sworn into office on 12 June 2005.