Intertextuality in Kurdish Political Discourse: Power, Identity, and Legitimacy in Masoud Barzani’s 2024 Election Rhetoric

This study explores the use of intertextuality in the rhetoric of Masoud Barzani during the 2024 elections. The research focus centers on how Barzani employed intertextuality in his electoral campaign speech delivered on Wednesday, September 25, 2024, to construct and reinforce his power, identity, and legitimacy as a Kurdish leader. The primary objective of this Paper is to examine how these intertextual references shape Barzani’s communicative style and contribute to the construction of his political image within Kurdish politics. The data for this study are drawn from Barzani’s campaign speech, broadcast on the Gulan Media and K24 platforms. Methodologically, the analysis adopts Fairclough’s (1992) three-dimensional framework, which examines the text at three levels: textual, discursive, and socio-cultural. At each level, different forms of intertextuality - including direct quotations, allusions, pastiches, and genre borrowing - are analyzed to uncover how Barzani’s language reflects the broader political and cultural context of the Kurdish people. The findings reveal that Barzani’s discourse effectively employs intertextuality as a rhetorical strategy to assert power, reinforce legitimacy, and construct a strong sense of Kurdish identity. This analysis offers valuable insights for further studies on Kurdish political discourse and leadership communication.