Iraqis Head To The Polls

by Alyssa Landers

With the Iraq provincial elections finally at a close, the results are in—and not without unexpected results.  Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki of the Islamic Dawa Party, who started his career as a Shi’ite political dissident under the Saddam regime, won approval in nine of the fourteen provinces with the highest rating in the southern and central provinces. 

 However, with almost forty percent of Iraqis out at the polls this year (as compared to a mere two percent in 2005), the results were far from unanimous.  In the north, for example, the Al Hadba party leads in the polls, followed by the Kurdish Ninevah Brotherhood.  In the western province of Anbar, the results were close, with the Iraqi National Project, the Sunni-led Sahwa (“Awakening”) Party, and the Iraqi Islamic Party (IIP) all in close competition. 

 In stark contrast to the somewhat chaotic elections of 2005, which were largely boycotted by a marginalized Sunni population, the elections that took place on January 31^st seem to have gone quite smoothly, with many speculating that a Maliki-led secular nationalism could translate to a full-blown, Iraqi-run Democracy.  Some even went as far as to say that “the war is over.”    

 Although Barack Obama had nothing but warm congratulations for Iraqis at the polls this year, the president’s commitment to a “responsible, phased withdrawal” from the area remains stringent.  According to Secretary of Defense Robert M. Gates the Status of Forces agreement between the U.S. and Iraq (effective as of January 1^st, 2009), which “calls for U.S. combat troops to be out of Iraqi cities by the end of June, and all troops out of Iraq by the end of 2011, at the latest,” will serve to “balance the interests of both countries as we see the emergence of a sovereign Iraq in full control of its territory.” 

 Yet anti-American sentiment still runs high in much of Iraq, especially among Sunni Arabs in the nation, leading some to question whether we can count on a newly-independent Iraq as a future ally.  With the recent elections, Sunnis have a definite chance of re-claiming power in Iraq, now with a more centralized focus. 

 However, the question of fairness of the elections remains unanswered, as some contend that Maliki’s "sweeping victory" in provinces like Baghdad and Basra occurred due to “voting irregularities” and as such plan to appeal any Dawa victory. 

 Whatever the speculations, conditions in Iraq have undoubtedly improved in recent months, with a significant drop in violence.  According to The New York Times, security remained tight and there were “no confirmed deaths,” which contributed to the celebratory air among Iraqi voters.  As one Iraqi voter stated, “I’m very happy…We could not do the same thing the last time because of the insurgency.”