Rivals challenge Iraq PM's election success
Iraq's political parties have already begun meeting and maneuvering as they seek to build post-election alliances
DOUBTS. An Iraqi man reads a local newspaper the day after results revealed that Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki won the most seats in parliamentary elections, in Baghdad on May 20, 2014. Results from the election commission showed State of Law garnered 92 out of 328 parliamentary seats, with Maliki himself winning more than 721,000 personal votes. AFP PHOTO/AHMAD AL-RUBAYE
BAGHDAD, Iraq Nuri al-Maliki may be in pole position to remain Iraq's prime minister, but allegations of malpractice during last month's polls are clouding the prospect of forming a government anytime soon.
Key rivals of the premier, from inside and outside his Shiite community, allege irregularities at the polling stations, as well as problems with the transport of ballot boxes and vote counting, potentially delaying the certification of results, or even changing final tallies.
Maliki's bloc emerged from the April 30 vote with by far the most seats in parliament, nearly three times as many as his nearest opponent, though his State of Law alliance fell short of an absolute majority on its own.
That means he will need to court support from rival blocs, many of whom have publicly said they will not countenance a third term for a prime minister they allege has consolidated power and is responsible for deteriorating security.
"By Thursday (May 22), we had received 30 complaints from candidates and parties," said Mohsen al-Mussawi, a board member on Iraq's election commission.
Mussawi said at least three major parties had submitted challenges.
They were the Sunni Arab Mutahidoon bloc of parliament speaker Osama al-Nujaifi, the secular Sunni-backed Wataniya party led by ex-premier Iyad Allawi, and the Shiite Muslim Citizens grouping that is seen as close to Iran.
The complaints will be considered by a committee of senior judges, who will then rule on their validity. No firm timeline has been set for the process.
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Rivals challenge Iraq PM's election success