Sadrists claim bagging most seats in Iraq polls

Published October 12, 2021
A poster of Iraqi Shia cleric Moqtada al-Sadr in the Sadr City district of Baghdad, Iraq, June 21. — Reuters/File
A poster of Iraqi Shia cleric Moqtada al-Sadr in the Sadr City district of Baghdad, Iraq, June 21. — Reuters/File

BAGHDAD: The political movement of Iraq’s influential Shia cleric Moqtada Sadr on Monday said it had retained the biggest share of seats in the country’s parliament, after elections with a record low voter turnout.

“The approximate number is 73 seats,” out of the 329, a Sadrist official said.

Sadrists held 54 seats, also the largest bloc, in the former parliament, and were considered the favourites in Sunday’s election which occurred against widespread disillusionment about a political elite seen as inept and corrupt.

An electoral commission official confirmed preliminary results from Sunday’s poll showed the Sadrists “in the lead”.

Although experts had expected the large blocs to preserve their dominance in the fragmented parliament, the lack of a clear majority will force them to negotiate alliances.

The election was moved forward from 2022 as a concession to an anti-government protest movement that has demanded deep reforms in the oil-rich yet poverty-stricken country. In the end voter participation hit a new low in Iraq’s fifth election since the 2003 US-led invasion that ousted dictator Saddam Hussein with the promise of bringing freedom and democracy.

Published in Dawn, October 12th, 2021

Opinion

Editorial

Smog hazard
Updated 05 Nov, 2024

Smog hazard

The catastrophe unfolding in Lahore is a product of authorities’ repeated failure to recognise environmental impact of rapid urbanisation.
Monetary policy
05 Nov, 2024

Monetary policy

IN an aggressive move, the State Bank on Monday reduced its key policy rate by a hefty 250bps to 15pc. This is the...
Cultural power
05 Nov, 2024

Cultural power

AS vital modes of communication, art and culture have the power to overcome social and international barriers....
Disregarding CCI
Updated 04 Nov, 2024

Disregarding CCI

The failure to regularly convene CCI meetings means that the process of democratic decision-making is falling apart.
Defeating TB
04 Nov, 2024

Defeating TB

CONSIDERING the fact that Pakistan has the fifth highest burden of tuberculosis in the world as per the World Health...
Ceasefire charade
Updated 04 Nov, 2024

Ceasefire charade

The US talks of peace, while simultaneously arming and funding their Israeli allies, are doomed to fail, and are little more than a charade.