(Updated) Agency: Abadi leads the Iraqi elections followed by Sadr and Amiri III

(Updated) Agency: Abadi leads the Iraqi elections followed by Sadr and Amiri III

According to unofficial preliminary results ...

13/05/2018 - 11:16 Iraq



BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi's list appears to be advancing in parliamentary elections, followed by a list of prominent Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr, a senior Iraqi official said on Sunday.

According to Reuters, the two sources were based on preliminary informal results.

Iraqis voted on Saturday in the first election since the defeat of an al-Qaeda organization in the country. The final official results are expected on Monday.

The voter turnout was 44.52 percent, with 92 percent of votes counted, much lower than in previous elections, the commission said.

Abadi, an ally of the United States and Iran, was mainly concerned with defeating powerful Shiite political groups that would seek to make Iraq closer to Iran, not including Sadr's alliance.

Ebadi competed with his predecessor, Nuri al-Maliki and Hadi al-Amiri, commander of the main armed Shiite faction, both closer to Iran than him.

Preliminary unofficial results compiled by Reuters reporters in the southern provinces also indicate that Sadr, who led violent confrontations against US forces from 2003 to 2011, appears to be performing strongly.

If Sadr's list comes in second, this result will be a surprise return. Sadr is popular among young men, the poor and destitute, but other influential Shi'ite figures backed by Iran such as Amiri have marginalized him.

Sadr formed an unusual alliance with communists and independents who favor secularism and joined protests in 2016 to press the government to stamp out corruption.

Sadr's influence is attributed to, among others, his family. His father, Grand Ayatollah Mohammad Sadiq al-Sadr, was killed in 1999 for opposing Saddam Hussein. Saddam's cousin, Mohammed Baqir al-Sadr, was also killed in 1980.

Regardless of the winner, he will deal with the implications of US President Donald Trump's decision to withdraw from Iran's nuclear deal, a move that has raised Iraqis' fears that their country would become a battleground for Washington-Tehran conflict.

  Balance

Abadi, who took power four years ago after a pro-Iraqi organization controlled one-third of Iraqi territory, won US military support for the Iraqi army to defeat the militant group but at the same time opened the door to Iran's support for militant Shi'ite factions fighting the group.

If Abadi is elected as prime minister, he will remain under pressure to maintain this balance amid tension between Washington and Tehran over the nuclear deal.

Some Iraqis believe that Abbadi, an architect who studied in Britain, lacks charisma and is ineffective. Abbadi did not have a strong political entity of his own when he took office.

But the prime minister's position has improved after a daunting defeat and his campaign against corruption.

Even if Abbadi's victory list wins most seats, he will have to negotiate a coalition government that must be reached within 90 days of the election.

The Badr Organization, led by al-Amiri, has played a major role in the fight against the organization of the Islamic state, but some Iraqis resent its close ties to Tehran. Amiri spent more than 20 years opposing Saddam from exile in Iran.

The source in the Electoral Commission and the security official said Amiri's list is expected to be replaced in third place.

The preliminary results of the Iraqi legislative elections in the city of Erbil and Dahuk, has revealed yesterday evening progress of the Kurdistan Democratic Party led by Massoud Barzani, the rest of the parties and coalitions of Kurdistan.

The Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) ranked fourth in Iraq in a survey conducted by the Iraqi Center for Strategic Studies on the Iraqi legislative elections.

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