On January 31st 2009, Iraqis held their second provincial elections since the fall of the Baathist regime in 2003. The results signaled widespread support for secular and nationalist forces and serious electoral losses for the religious federalist parties, who had been accused of mass corruption and mismanagement. Significantly, Sunni Arabs for the first time actively participated in the elections, thus reversing the disproportionate results of their boycott in 2005.
The 2009 provincial elections were a major boost for Prime Minister Nouri Maliki, whose Rule of Law Coalition running on a nationalist platform, won majorities in most provinces which greatly stenghtened his position vis-à-vis his Shiite rivals. The provincial elections also indicate a major shift towards inter-sectarian competition, as well as a re-drawing of the inter-sectarian balance of power.
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About the Author
Doreen Khoury was Program Manager at the Heinrich Böll Stiftung’s office in Beirut from 2009 until August 2012. Prior to that, she worked as researcher and elections specialist at the Lebanese Centre for Policy Studies (LCPS) and served as executive director of the Lebanese Association for Democratic Elections. She specializes in elections, governance, anti-corruption and social media issues. In April 2013, she finished a fellowship at the German think-tank Stiftung Wissenschaft und Politik in Berlin