ALBAWABA - Voting began in Iraq on Monday in the first elections for provincial councils in a decade, with the ruling Shiite Muslim alliance likely to extend its grip on power.
These elections pave the way for the parliamentary elections set to take place in 2025. The last local elections were held in 2013, and since then they were postponed due to the war against ISIS.
Amid a boycott by populist cleric Moqtada Al-Sadr, his Shiite opponents, who blocked his bid to form a government after he won the 2021 parliamentary elections, are likely to take control of the majority of local councils, particularly in the predominantly Shiite southern provinces.
This would further consolidate the power of the ruling Shiite alliance close to Iran, known as the Coordination Framework, by giving them access to state oil wealth that could be spent on local projects and services.
Following the withdrawal of Sadr's party members, the alliance is currently the single-largest bloc in parliament.
Voting takes place in 15 of Iraq's 18 provinces to elect 285 council members, whose responsibilities include appointing powerful provincial governors and overseeing local administration. Elections in Iraq's semi-autonomous Kurdistan region, which includes three provinces, are scheduled for next year.
Iraqi Prime Minister, Mohammed Shia Al-Sudani, emphasized on Monday the significance of the Provincial Council elections as a crucial step towards implementing decentralization in the country, Shafaq News reported.
Speaking to various media outlets after casting his vote at a polling station in Al-Karkh district in Baghdad, he expressed gratitude to the media for covering the electoral process and commended the exceptional efforts of the security apparatus during the elections.
The Prime Minister further stated that "Provincial Councils will support the government in its agenda," noting, "the Commission has made exceptional efforts to fulfill all electoral requirements".
