Protests in Iraq as Losing Parties Reject Election Results

Iraq’s Army has deployed reinforcements throughout the nation this weekend after the finalization of election results has led to major protests from several parties who lost and are refusing to accept the outcome.

It took a solid week to get to this point from the election itself, despite the low turnout. The main trend of the Sadrists winning the vote was and is the bottom line, with Sadr the only person not contesting anything.

And even though the recount was in line with the early counts, it’s not to say the vote went unchanged. The Election Commission revised the figures mid-week in the face of threats from Fatah, the militia umbrella party. They gained at least 7 seats from independents and 3-4 of Sadr’s seats.

The Election Commission seems to be betting these seats will be enough to forestall militia attacks, though even with the changes they are still far down the totem pole, and the Sadrists still hold a safe plurality.

As with other recent elections, there is no obvious path to a coalition government, and deal-making could last some time.