# Iraq polls (provincial elections)



## Yrys (1 Feb 2009)

Tight security before Iraq polls, BBC News, 30 January 2009






The US military is sending heavy troop 
deployments onto the streets


A full-scale security clampdown is being rolled out in Iraq ahead of regional 
elections this weekend. It comes after gunmen killed three candidates in 
separate incidents across the country, after a relatively violence-free 
campaign. Millions of Iraqis are expected to vote for provincial councils, in 
the first country-wide elections since 2005. They are being seen as a test of 
Iraq's improving stability and a guide to the general election later this year.

The shooting of Sunni election contenders happened on Thursday in Baghdad 
and in the northern city of Mosul. In Diyala province, a candidate and two 
campaign workers were also killed. The level of violence around Iraq is 
significantly lower than in past years. The security measures, however, include 
closing Iraq's international borders, ordering traffic bans across Baghdad and 
major cities, halting air traffic and night-time curfews.

Hundreds of women, including teachers and civic workers, have also been 
recruited to help search women voters after a rise in female suicide bombers 
last year, according to the Associated Press.

Iraqi and US military commanders have in recent days warned that al-Qaeda 
poses a threat to the elections.

The International Crisis Group, which studies conflict-torn nations around the 
world, has emphasised the importance of the poll. In a report, it said: "Whereas 
the January 2005 elections helped put Iraq on the path to all-out civil war, these 
polls could represent another, far more peaceful turning point."The election is also 
being seen as a quasi referendum on the leadership of Prime Minister Nouri Maliki.

Four years ago, Iraq's Sunni Arabs boycotted the legislative election, allowing Shia 
and Kurdish parties to take control of parliament, but Sunnis are now expected to 
take part in large numbers. 

Saturday's elections are being held in 14 of the country's 18 provinces, with more 
than 14,000 candidates competing for just 440 seats. It is being organised by the 
United Nations and Iraq's Independent High Election Commission, with 800 
international observers expected to oversee the balloting. Iraq's provincial councils 
are responsible for nominating the governors who lead the administration and 
oversee finance and reconstruction projects. Security forces remain under federal 
government control.


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## Yrys (1 Feb 2009)

Peace and quiet mark Iraq polls, 1 February 2009





The security services were out in force, 
but all was quiet

There was none of the same election fever of 2005, when voters emerged 
proudly from polling stations with purple-ink stained thumbs. And turnout 
appears to have been on the low side, except in Sunni areas where many 
were voting for the first time.

But Saturday's provincial elections were memorable for another reason - 
how peacefully they passed off.

Iraqis I have spoken to say it was one of the quietest days they can remember 
since the US-led invasion of 2003. There was just one reported incident in 
Baghdad, an accidental shooting. Two years ago, attacks were running at more 
than 100 a day.

*Relaxed*

Remembering those days of endless gunfire and explosions, it felt strangely quiet 
on Saturday. The atmosphere was almost festive - families looking relaxed and 
happy as they walked to the polling stations because of the ban on vehicles. Those 
empty streets made perfect open-ended football grounds for groups of young boys, 
using bollards and barriers set up by the security forces as goal posts.

With an election pass for our vehicle, we could drive between different polling stations 
- but often had to dodge youngsters charging into the road chasing a ball. Things were 
not so active, though, at the polling stations I visited. At one in west Baghdad, officials 
told us it had been much less busy than during the last elections in December 2005.

It all looked well organised. Classrooms had been cleared of their furniture to make way 
for voting booths. Large, well-printed posters explained each stage of the voting process.

Nonetheless, some voters still had trouble finding their preferred party and candidate on 
the giant coloured ballot sheets for Baghdad. In the capital, *150 parties and nearly 2,500 
candidates were in the running for 57 provincial council seats*. The queues of voters were 
a little thin, but despite that, Iraq's new army and police were out in force.

*Back seat*

They say this is the largest security operation they have yet mounted, with even the tiny
Iraqi air force apparently involved to provide video surveillance. Across the country 500,000 
soldiers and police were reportedly deployed, virtually the entire force.

There were a few American patrols out in Baghdad during the day, but they were taking a 
back seat this time. And it looked like every Iraqi unit had been called out. At one polling 
station, we found a unit of Iraqi special forces - with noticeably better equipment than 
regular army soldiers - were in charge of security, searching everyone going in.

The fact Saturday's vote passed off so smoothly will be seen as a further sign of the 
progress Iraq's security forces have made. But the calm may also be simply because 
those insurgents and other groups still fighting had decided not to strike. Eight candidates 
were killed in the run-up to the vote and, although the violence has fallen dramatically, Iraq 
is still a dangerous place.

Saturday was a promising sign that the country is on the road to stability, but it is not there yet.


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## Yrys (1 Feb 2009)

Surge in voting by Iraqi Sunnis, 1 February 2009





Turnout was lower than some had 
expected

Turnout in Saturday's provincial elections in Iraq was 51%, according 
to figures from the electoral commission. This was lower than some 
had predicted, but Iraqi officials told news agencies turnout had jumped 
in some mainly Sunni areas which previously boycotted polls.

US President Barack Obama hailed the largely peaceful vote, which he 
called "an important step forward".

Figures provided to AFP news agency suggest January was the most 
peaceful month since 2003's US-led invasion.In total 191 civilians, soldiers 
and police were killed, authorities told AFP - down 42% on December's toll, 
which was at the time itself the lowest figure for three years.

"I consider the toll is due to the efforts of the Iraqi security forces, and the 
support of the Iraqi people, which helped to keep down the terror," defence 
ministry spokesman Maj Gen Mohammad al-Askari told AFP. "This toll is the 
lowest since 2003," he said.

*Sharp rise*

Turnout in Saturday's vote was 51% - lower than the 55.7% seen in 2005 
polls, the Independent High Electoral Commission said on Sunday. The figure 
was lower than some predictions of about 60%. But turnout shot up in some 
Sunni-dominated parts of the country, such as Ninevah province, where it is 
thought to have reached at least 60% compared with 14% four years ago, 
Iraqi officials told news agencies.

The elections were held in 14 of the country's 18 provinces, with more than 
14,000 candidates competing for just 440 seats. There was no voting in the 
three provinces of the semi-autonomous Kurdish region of the north and the 
ballot was postponed in oil-rich Kirkuk province.

Official results from Saturday's polls are expected in a few days' time.

*'Taking responsibility*'

The first nationwide vote in four years was seen as a test of stability before a 
general election due later this year.

President Obama said he congratulated the people of Iraq on the smooth-running 
elections. "This important step forward should continue the process of Iraqis taking 
responsibility for their future," he said in a statement. Mr Obama urged the newly 
elected councils to "get seated, select new governors, and begin work on behalf of 
the Iraqi people who elected them".

Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri Maliki called the polls "a victory for all the Iraqis".  

_*IRAQI ELECTIONS*_
2003: US appoints Governing Council
2004: Governing Council elects interim government
Aug 2004: National conference elects interim national assembly
Jan 2005: First general elections for transitional national assembly and provincial councils - Sunnis boycott vote
Dec 2005: General elections for first full-term government and parliament
Jan 2009: Elections for provincial councils - key test of security gains
Late 2009: General elections due


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## PuckChaser (1 Feb 2009)

Considering its an emerging democracy, 51% is a pretty good turnout. Heck, Canada's been doing this for 142 years and we're only at 59.1%.


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## Yrys (1 Feb 2009)

Iraqi PM hails vote as 'victory', 31 January 2009

Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri Maliki has hailed a largely peaceful vote 
for new provincial councils across the country as a victory for all 
Iraqis.

Voting was extended by one hour due to a strong turnout, including 
among Sunni Muslims who boycotted the last polls. The first nationwide 
vote in four years is seen as a test of stability before a general election 
due later this year.
...

*Quasi-referendum*

Thousands of soldiers and police were deployed around polling stations.

The election is also being seen as a quasi-referendum on the leadership of 
Mr Maliki. "This is a victory for all the Iraqis," he said, after casting his vote 
in Baghdad's highly-protected Green Zone. He said a high turnout would be 
an indicator of "the Iraqi people's trust in their government and in the 
elections" and "proof that the Iraqi people are now living in real security". A 
peaceful vote could also set the stage for further coalition troop withdrawals, 
says the BBC's Jim Muir in Baghdad.

Up to 15 million Iraqis are eligible to cast votes.

The elections are being held in 14 of the country's 18 provinces, with more than 
14,000 candidates competing for just 440 seats. There is no voting in the three 
provinces of the semi-autonomous Kurdish region of the north and the ballot has 
been postponed in oil-rich Kirkuk province. Iraq's provincial councils are responsible 
for nominating the governors who lead the administration and oversee finance and 
reconstruction projects.

*Security tight*

While the recent level of violence around Iraq is significantly lower than in past years, 
a major security operation took place across the country. Iraq's international borders 
were shut, traffic bans were put in place across Baghdad and major cities, and 
curfews introduced.
...

Voters had to pass through stringent security checks to reach the polling stations, which 
were mostly set up in schools, our correspondent says. Despite warnings from Iraqi and 
US military commanders that al-Qaeda posed a threat to the elections, there were 
relatively few incidents reported. As voting got under way, several mortar rounds landed 
near polling stations in Tikrit, hometown of late ruler Saddam Hussein, but no casualties 
were reported.

Associated Press news agency reported a shooting incident at a polling station in Baghdad, 
but it was unclear if one man had been killed or two injured. There were also reports that 
a number of people were not listed on voter rolls, preventing them from casting ballots.

Hundreds of international observers are monitoring the vote, as well as thousands of local 
observers from the various political parties.

After a slow start to voting, the pace picked up and there was a holiday atmosphere among 
voters walking to the polling stations, our correspondent says. "People here are so excited 
by the feeling that their vote can make a difference," Lubna Naji, a Baghdad medical student, 
told the BBC News website. She added that people knew better who to vote for than in 2005: 
"This time we know who cares for Iraq and its people and who only cares for their own 
interests and benefit. "This time we won't let those people who have let us down in the past 
reach power again."

*Sunni participation*

The turnout was reported to be brisk even in Sunni areas.

The head of the Iraqi electoral commission in Anbar province - a centre of the Sunni resistance 
to the US occupation - said he was expecting a 60% turnout. Fewer than 2% voted in the 2005 
election, with the result that Shia and Kurdish parties took control of parliament.

Some Sunnis, like Khaled al-Azemi, said the boycott last time had been a mistake. "We lost a lot 
because we didn't vote and we saw the result - sectarian violence" he told the BBC. "That's why 
we want to vote now to avoid the mistakes of the past."

The drawing of alienated Sunnis back into the political arena is one of the big changes these 
elections will crystallise, the BBC's Jim Muir reports from Baghdad. On the Shia side, the results 
will also be closely watched amid signs that many voters intend to turn away from the big religious 
factions and towards nationalist or secular ones.


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## Yrys (1 Feb 2009)

5 Iraqis shot dead ahead of provincial elections, CNN, January 29, 2009

BAGHDAD, Iraq  -- Attackers in Iraq killed three Sunni Arab provincial election candidates 
and two election workers Thursday in violence that has startled an eager electorate in the 
run-up to the polls Saturday.  Iraqi, U.S. and U.N. officials have consistently warned against 
a possible uptick in attacks ahead of Iraq's all-important provincial elections. Security forces 
ramped up efforts to protect candidates and election centers. Overall, there has not been 
widespread election-related violence.

*Omar Farouq al-Ani*, an Iraqi Islamic Party member running for a council seat in the capital, 
was gunned down near his Amriya home in western Baghdad, an Interior Ministry official said. 
Al-Ani, whose party is the most prominent Sunni Arab movement in Iraq, was driving home 
from an election rally when he was attacked.

*Hazem Salem Ahmed*, a Sunni Arab from the National Unity list, was shot dead outside his 
home in the northern city of Mosul, police said.

*Abbas Farhan al-Jabouri* of the Development and National Reform list *and two election 
workers* were found shot dead in the Diyala province city of Mandali a few hours after they 
were kidnapped, police said.

Sunni Arabs, more powerful under Saddam Hussein's rule, largely shunned the provincial 
elections four years ago when Shiites and Kurds rose in power. However, they have been 
very active in campaigning now as they have become more accepted into Iraq's new political 
fold. It is not known whether the attackers were rival supporters, militants who oppose the 
staging of the elections, or killers intent on sectarian retribution.

Another incident on Wednesday night is also thought to be election-related. The Iraqi Islamic 
Party is questioning whether a woman gunned down in western Baghdad was slain because 
attackers mistook her for one of its candidates.  Mayyada al-Bayati was killed when the attackers 
stormed her house in the Yarmouk neighborhood, an Interior Ministry official told CNN on Thursday.

A party official said al-Bayati is the sister-in-law of one of its female candidates seeking a Baghdad 
council seat. Party officials believe al-Bayati was killed because the attackers mistakenly thought 
she was the candidate. Tariq al-Hashimi, one of Iraq's two vice presidents, is the Iraqi Islamic Party's 
most prominent member.

Of the more than 14,400 candidates participating in the local elections, nearly 4,000 of them are 
women. Iraq's provincial elections are scheduled for Saturday. At stake are 440 seats on local 
councils, which name the regional governors.


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## Yrys (1 Feb 2009)

See also : Changes in Iraq Election Law Weaken Quota for Women - NY Times on this subject

 4,000 women run for office in Iraq, CNN, January 31, 2009

BAGHDAD, Iraq (CNN)  -- Four thousand women are running for office in Iraq's provincial elections 
Saturday, and many of them will be guaranteed seats under an electoral quota system. Regardless 
of the votes their candidates receive, parties are required to give every third seat to a woman, 
according to a report this week from the International Crisis Group. The ultimate share of seats 
held by women will depend on the distribution of votes among parties, the report said.

Some women candidates say these elections -- only the second provincial elections since the fall 
of Saddam Hussein -- are a chance to improve their standing in Iraqi society. Nibras al-Mamuri is 
a secular female candidate who argues that fundamentalists have taken over the country. She says 
it was the 2005 elections that brought them into power and tarnished Islam's image in Iraq.

Al-Mamuri, who is running for the Baghdad provincial council, says it's time for a change.  "Although 
a woman's role in the Arab world is mainly that of a mother and child bearer," she said, "I want to 
prove that women are just as capable as men when it comes to challenging arenas."

At first, al-Mamuri said, she thought just participating in the elections as a woman was enough. But 
now, she says she is running to win in order to defy men who believe a woman's place is in the home.
"I've entered a battlefield where women have to prove they are competent," she said. "I have to forget 
about fear."

In recent years, Iraqi women have been targeted by extremists for a variety of reasons -- from not 
covering their hair to entering the political arena.

Under Hussein, Iraq was one of the more secular Arab countries, but the 2003 U.S. invasion unleashed 
extremist militias. Now, many activists say women have been forced back to the Dark Ages, forced to 
be submissive, anonymous and fully veiled.

Al-Mamuri said she believes Saturday's vote can help women improve their position in society. "An Iraqi 
woman can be an equal. She can participate in change," she told CNN.

The image of a woman posing a public and direct challenge to fundamentalists and their beliefs was not 
seen in the 2005 vote.

"Iraqi women form the core of society," said Rissala Khalid, another female candidate in Baghdad.
Passing out her campaign card, Khalid told young women that she will fight for their rights, and told
 young men that she will try to provide jobs for Iraq's largely unemployed youth.


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## Yrys (1 Feb 2009)

Government allies see gains in Iraqi elections, The Associated Press

BAGHDAD -- Allies of Iraq's U.S.-backed prime minister appeared Sunday to have made 
gains in the provincial elections, rewarding groups credited with reining in insurgents and 
militias, according to unofficial projections.

Initial results from Saturday's landmark voting are not expected for days. But reports by 
Iraqi media and interviews by The Associated Press suggest candidates backing Prime 
Minister Nouri al-Maliki had strong showings in the crucial Shiite heartland in southern Iraq.

If the indications prove true, it would strengthen al-Maliki's hand ahead of national elections 
later this year and reflect a shift away from the more religious parties dominating the country.

Nationwide turnout was 51 per cent, said Faraj al-Haidari, chairman of the election commission. 
It ranged from 40 per cent in the Sunni-dominated Anbar province in western Iraq to 65 percent 
in the Salahuddin province, which includes the hometown of Saddam Hussein. Final figures were 
not yet ready for the Baghdad area, but al-Haidari said initial reports placed it at about 40 per cent.

Al-Maliki's supporters appeared to hold the lead in many areas of the south, including the key city 
of Basra and the Shiite spiritual centre of Najaf, according to Iraq's private Al-Sharqiya television. 
The trend was supported by voter comments in Basra and other areas. Many voters praised last 
year's government-backed crackdown that broke the Shiite militia control in Basra and other areas.

"Al-Maliki ended the militiamen's reign of terror," said Faisal Hamadi, 58, after voting in Basra. 
"For this he deserves our vote."

Gains by al-Maliki's allies would come directly at the expense of the biggest Shiite party, the Supreme 
Islamic Iraqi Council, which is a senior partner in the government but has hinted it could make a bid 
to take the leadership in national elections later this year. The Supreme Council has a strong base 
among Shiite religious authorities -- who are seen with suspicion by some Iraqis because of perceived 
ties to neighbouring Iran and claims they fueled sectarian violence.

In the western Anbar province, Sunni tribesmen also are hoping to ride public support for their role in 
fighting insurgents. The so-called Awakening Councils, which rose up against al-Qaida in Iraq and other 
factions in late 2006, are credited with leading a turning point of the war. The tribal leaders are now 
seeking to capture seats on the provincial councils, which control spending, jobs and other important 
regional influence. Sunnis widely boycotted the last provincial elections in 2005 because of fears of 
reprisals from insurgents and opposition to the U.S. occupation.

The elections took place without serious violence and were hailed as a major achievement by Iraqi 
officials seeking a return to stability nearly six years after the U.S.-led invasion. But there were 
widespread reports of eligible voters left off ballot lists. Election officials said they would investigate 
the claims. Voting took place in 14 of Iraq's 18 provinces. Elections are planned later in the Kurdish 
autonomous region and were indefinitely postponed in the area around oil-rich Kirkuk, where ethnic 
groups could not agree on a power-sharing formula.


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## Yrys (1 Feb 2009)

Maliki and Secular Parties Show Big Gains in Iraq, NY Times

BAGHDAD — Prime Minister Nuri Kamal al-Maliki and several secular parties 
appeared to score significant gains in Iraq’s provincial elections on Saturday, 
preliminary reports showed Sunday.

If the early returns prove accurate, the prime minister could be strengthened 
in dealings with Parliament before national elections to be held by next year. 
Mr. Maliki’s Dawa Party drew strong support in Basra and Baghdad, two of 
Iraq’s largest and most politically important provinces, according to political 
parties and election officials who spoke on the condition of anonymity because 
they were not authorized to discuss preliminary tallies.

The relative success of the secular parties may be a sign that a significant number 
of Iraqis are disillusioned with the religious parties that have been in power but 
have done little to deliver needed services. Well-known incumbent parties also 
did well.

The Americans had pushed for the provincial elections as a way to redistribute 
power more evenly throughout the country after many Iraqis boycotted the last 
elections in 2005. It was unclear whether a lower-than-expected turnout, at 51 
percent nationwide, would curb hopes that all Iraqi sectarian and ethnic groups 
could be more accurately represented.

Faraj al-Haideri, the head of the Independent High Electoral Commission, described 
the election as fair and said there was no evidence of major fraud. He said the 
commission was “very pleased with the turnout,” adding, “Very rarely in other parts 
of the world do you get such a high percentage voting in provincial elections.”

Low turnout of just 40 percent in Anbar Province was a particular surprise because 
the area, for years racked by a brutal insurgency, is now relatively calm and many 
people were eager to vote after having sat out the elections in 2005. Despite the 
low numbers in Anbar, the electoral commission said Sunni participation nationwide 
was higher than it had been in 2005.

The turnout appeared to reflect confusion over voting procedures as well as voter 
apathy. There were complaints across the country from Iraqis who had tried to vote 
but were unable to do so. Most were prevented either because a strict curfew 
prevented them from reaching their polling center or because their names were not 
on the center’s voter roll when they got there.

Part of the problem was caused by the large number of internally displaced Iraqis who 
no longer live in the province where they are registered to vote. About one million Iraqis 
were displaced as a result of sectarian and ethnic fighting over the past five years, and 
while some have returned the majority are living outside their home province. It was too 
early to tell whether those people who were unable to vote would seek redress or resort 
to violence — or simply resign themselves to not having a voice.

Most parties said they were not planning to contest the results, at least for now, though a 
few said they had not ruled it out.

While official results of how many seats each party won are still several days off, interviews 
with election officials in a number of provinces as well as independent observers and 
representatives of political parties indicated that Mr. Maliki’s Dawa Party gained electoral 
support in most provinces. The party’s television channel said it had won in Baghdad and Basra.
However, that seemed to mean that the party received more votes than other parties but not 
necessarily a majority.

The Dawa Party’s claim was corroborated by its strongest competitor in the south, the Islamic 
Supreme Council of Iraq, which previously controlled Baghdad. Its television network said it had 
not won Baghdad or Basra.

Maithem Hussein, the head of an nongovernment organization tracking the election in Basra, said 
Mr. Maliki’s victory there was expected. “Maliki has saved Basra from militias,” he said. “Basra owes 
him.”

Although the Supreme Council, which relied on its Shiite religious identity during the campaign, lost 
seats in several provinces, it was still among the top three or four vote-getters in most provinces 
south of Baghdad. Other incumbent parties also had strong showings in multiple provinces, including 
the secular Iraqi National List led by Ayad Allawi, a former interim prime minister; the Iraqi Islamic 
Party led by Vice President Tariq al-Hashimi, a Sunni; and the nominally independent parties backed 
by the Shiite cleric Moktada al-Sadr.

Several politicians said the strong showing by Mr. Allawi’s party was notable. “This really reflects that 
Iraqi society is looking for alternatives — they do not necessarily believe that the Islamists should lead 
the country,” said Qassim Daoud, a member of Parliament and one of the leaders of an independent, 
secular-leaning party. “The public are interested in services, and this election has shown them that they 
can change anything by democratic means if they are not satisfied.”

Members of another independent party, the National Reformation Movement, expressed similar views. 
“At least we will get some seats and we will make alliances with other blocs,” said Moad al-Obaidi, a 
party member. Some party officials blamed the electoral commission for failing to make the registration 
system simpler. 

The commission defended its procedure and said it was a trade-off between a completely accessible 
system and one with integrity, said Ayad Hillal al-Kinani, a commission member. He said people had 
45 days to change their registration. An effort was made to direct people to the correct voting center 
by posting signs near the offices of local food-ration agents explaining the location of voting centers. 
All Iraqis receive a basket of monthly food rations, a holdover from the era of Saddam Hussein.

Frustrated with the government and disillusioned with its performance over the past four years, a number 
of people appeared to have decided to skip voting altogether. “I did not vote because I could not find a 
qualified candidate that I can trust — all those candidates came for their personal benefits,” said Maher 
Naji, 37, a day laborer in Falluja.

The Falluja area of Anbar Province had one of the lowest turnouts in the country, with some estimates 
that only 25 percent of eligible voters went to the polls. Over all, the province had extremely low turnout 
and the new tribal parties that believed they would do well were furious that their main competitor, 
the religious Iraqi Islamic Party, appeared to have once again won a large number of seats.

Ahmed Abu Risha, a powerful tribesman in Anbar Province and the brother of one of the founders of the 
Awakening councils, which joined the Americans to fight Islamic insurgents, said he believed that the turnout 
was lower than the 40 percent announced by the election commission and that the numbers were being 
manipulated by the Iraqi Islamic Party. “If the Islamic Party wins, it will be another Darfur,” he said.

_Reporting was contributed by Sam Dagher, Timothy Williams, Atheer Kakan, Suadad al-Salhy and Mohamed 
Hussein from Baghdad, and Iraqi employees of The New York Times from Nineveh, Anbar, Babil, Najaf and 
Diyala Provinces._


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## Yrys (15 Feb 2009)

Iraqi election commission acknowledges fraud, AP

BAGHDAD -- Iraqi officials nullified election results in more than 30 polling stations 
due to fraud in last month's provincial balloting, but the cases were not significant 
enough to require a new vote in any province, the election chief said Sunday.

Faraj al-Haidari said final results of the Jan. 31 voting would be certified and 
announced this week. Preliminary official results announced Feb. 5 showed 
Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki's ticket swept to victory over Shiite religious parties 
in Baghdad and southern Iraq -- a strong endorsement of his crackdown on Shiite 
extremists. Voters in 14 of the 18 provinces were choosing members of ruling 
provincial councils in an election seen as a dress rehearsal for parliamentary voting 
by the end of the year.

Al-Haidari said his commission had looked into fraud allegations from across the 
country and would announce the findings along with the certified results. But he 
added "we won't cancel" the election in any province. He told The Associated Press 
that the polling stations where ballots were nullified were scattered in all 14 
provinces, but he refused to say where the largest number was found. He did not 
say how many ballots were affected.

One official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not supposed to 
talk about the vote to media, said the most widespread fraud appeared to have been 
in Diyala province, which has large Sunni, Shiite and Kurdish communities and an 
ongoing insurgency. A coalition including the Iraqi Islamic Party, the largest Sunni political 
group, led in Diyala with 21.1 percent of the vote followed by a Kurdish alliance with 
17.2 percent, according to preliminary results. Al-Maliki's coalition finished fourth in Diyala 
with 9.5 percent.

U.S. officials have been closely watching the Diyala results for signs of friction between Arabs 
and Kurds, who are the biggest community in the far north of the province. The Kurds were 
hoping that a strong Kurdish showing in those areas would bolster their case for incorporating 
the territory into the Kurds self-ruled region.

Also Sunday, a bomb hidden in a garbage pile killed one person and injured 18 others in Sadr 
City, the Baghdad Shiite neighborhood that had been a Shiite militia stronghold until the Iraqi 
army took over the area last spring.

A roadside bomb in another predominantly Shiite Baghdad neighborhood, Talibiyah, missed 
a passing police patrol Sunday and injured three civilians, said a police official, speaking on 
condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to talk to media.

Sunni militants have kept up their attacks against Shiites, hoping to re-ignite the kind of 
sectarian conflict that engulfed the country two years ago. A series of bombings against Shiite 
pilgrims heading to the holy city of Karbala killed 60 people and wounded 170 last week.

In response, the Iraqi government stepped up security, adding 5,000 plainclothes military 
personnel to the more than 30,000 already deployed to protect Shiite pilgrims on their way 
to Karbala, 50 miles south of Baghdad.

Police arrested a would-be suicide bomber south of Baghdad on Sunday who had explosives 
under his clothes and said he was planning to target pilgrims headed to Karbala, said a police 
official, speaking on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to talk to the media.

The pilgrims are headed to Karbala to celebrate Monday's end of 40 days of mourning that 
follow the anniversary of the seventh-century death of the Prophet Muhammad's grandson 
Hussein, one of Shiite Islam's most revered saints. He was killed near Karbala in a battle for 
the leadership of the Muslim nation following Muhammad's death in 632. His death enshrined 
the split between Sunni and Shiite Muslims.


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