Iraq’s first local elections in a decade marred by low turnout

Iraq held its first provincial council elections in more than a decade yesterday, but they were marred by low voter turnout.

Citizens chose to stay away from the polls amid calls for a boycott, mainly from influential Shiite cleric Moqtada Al Sadr.

The atmosphere at polling stations across the country reflected a prevailing sense of disillusionment and frustration with the political elite as well as the persistent Shiite-Shiite political wrangling.

About 6,000 candidates vied for 285 seats nationwide, the Independent High Electoral Commission said.

These included 10 seats reserved for ethnic and religious minorities, namely Christians, Yazidis and Sabians. The field included about 1,600 women, for whom a quarter of the seats are reserved.

About 17 million people were eligible to vote at the 7,166 polling stations set up for the election. The vote took place in 15 of the 18 provinces. Three provinces, which form the Kurdish region in northern Iraq, operate under a separate autonomous system.

As of noon yesterday, the turnout nationwide was 17 per cent, the Independent High Electoral Commission said.

The commission expected the final turnout to exceed 30 per cent.

As the polls closed at 6pm local time, Interior Minister Lt Gen Abdul Amir Al Shammari and the commission said voting had passed without major security incidents or technical issues.

Initial results will be announced today, the commission said.

After casting his ballot in Baghdad, Prime Minister Mohammed Shia Al Sudani urged Iraqis to elect “honest” and “competent” representatives.

Mr Al Sudani said the elections were important as the councils “represent a pillar of the executive and help the government in the implementing of its polices”.

The Prime Minister’s calls did not resonate in some parts of the country.

“All are incompetent and thieves,” Mohammed Jassim told The National while serving customers at his tea kiosk in the eastern Baghdad suburb of Sadr City. “Why should I bother myself and vote for them?”

Few candidate posters were seen on the streets of Sadr City, a stronghold of support for Mr Al Sadr, and polling stations were empty at noon.

“Whatever Sayyed Moqtada tells us, we will follow,” Mr Jassim, 22, said.

Khalil Binwan, 55, said that while the political system had its flaws, boycotting the election only weakened the democratic process.

“I’m not boycotting, this is my right,” Mr Binwan said as he proudly displayed his inkstained finger after voting in Habibiyah district.

“Should we hinder efforts to build a state or contribute to them? If the official is corrupt, he will be removed by the elections, not through violence,” he said, adding that he had voted for a new face.

Overall, there was only a trickle of voters at polling stations by midday, prompting political leaders and clerics to call on their supporters to vote.

“The turnout may be limited because of widespread corruption and disappointment among the public with the political elite,” Hadi Jalo Marie, chairman of the Political Decision think tank in Baghdad, told The National.

Mr Al Sadr’s move will pave the way for his Iran-backed rivals to strengthen their presence in nine Shiite-dominated provinces in central and southern Iraq, as well as Baghdad, Mr Marie said.

The election boycott “diminishes its legitimacy domestically and internationally, and reduces the influence of corrupt individuals in our beloved Iraq”, Mr Al Sadr told his supporters last month.

Despite his strong showing in the 2021 parliamentary election, winning 73 of 329 seats, Mr Al Sadr ordered his MPs to resign and withdraw from the country’s political process.

That move allowed his rivals in the Co-ordination Framework, an umbrella group of Tehran-allied militias and parties that suffered major losses in the election, to form the government.

“What happened inside Parliament will be seen again in the provincial councils where Co-ordination Framework factions will control the councils in the Shiite provinces and Baghdad,” Mr Jalo said.

Citizens chose to stay away from the polls amid calls for a boycott, mainly from influential Shiite cleric Moqtada Al Sadr