Voter apathy and concerns about violence mark Iraqi's first provincial elections in a decade
ABC News
Iraqis have begun voting for the first time in a decade to select new provincial council members, who in turn will appoint governors, with the outcome seen as a bellwether for the parliamentary elections due to take place in 2025
BAGHDAD -- Iraqis began voting for the first time in a decade Saturday to select new provincial council members, who in turn will appoint governors, with the outcome seen as a bellwether for the parliamentary elections due to take place in 2025.
Saturday’s vote was restricted to military and security personnel and internally displaced people living in camps, with the main polling set to take place on Monday. Results are expected to be announced Tuesday.
Concerns were raised about a low voter turnout and potential violence spreading in the long-awaited polls taking place in the country’s 18 provinces.
The powerful Shiite cleric and political leader Muqtada al-Sadr — who officially resigned from politics in 2022 amid a lengthy deadlock over cabinet formation — has called on his supporters to boycott the provincial elections, saying that their participation would reinforce the dominance of a corrupt political class.
A widespread boycott would “reduce the legitimacy of the elections internationally and internally,” Sadr said in a statement.
