Iraqi parties scramble ahead of new October election date
The High Electoral Commission’s need for additional time to update constituents' records requires that the government postpone early elections until October, while political parties publicly oppose the new date and secretly support it.
Baghdad — Although Iraq’s higher authorities affirmed that early elections are to be held in early summer, the High Electoral Commission is unable to sit for the ballot on the scheduled date, which prompted the council of ministers to approve Jan. 19 the commission’s request to delay the voting until October.
In a joint meeting Jan. 13, and in the presence of Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General for Iraq Jeanine Plasschaert and members of the commission, Iraq’s three presidencies — the president, prime minister and parliament speaker — stressed the need to take all measures and make the preparations for early elections, so as to ensure the utmost credible outcomes.
