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Election officials in Iraq are counting the votes in a parliamentary election being closely watched by Washington. Correspondent Jane Arraf reports from Amman.
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JANE ARRAF, BYLINE: These are Iraq's sixth parliamentary elections since the U.S. invasion in 2003 toppled Saddam Hussein. So there isn't the excitement anymore of those first ones, but there's also less of the chaos and certainly a lot less danger. Voting day across Iraq unfolded peacefully. The big event in this election was who was not involved - Shia cleric Muqtada Sadr, whose followers in 2003 and 2004 fought U.S. forces in the streets. Sadr's movement was the big winner in the last elections three years ago, but he wasn't able to form a coalition government. This time, Sadr and hundreds of thousands of his followers boycotted the election.
A weakened Iran over the last two years has lost some of the ability to direct politics in neighboring Iraq, but it still has immense influence. Prime Minister Mohammed Shia Sudani, who's vying to keep his job, has been backed by Iran. And former Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, a deeply sectarian politician who wants his old job back, also has Tehran's crucial support. It's largely the same old political class, but given Iraq's population boom, there are an increasing number of young voters. They want the chance to move beyond Iraq's turbulent history, but they're also concerned over lack of jobs and climate issues like Iraq's water shortage. Dental student Mustafa Barjas (ph) voted for the first time.
MUSTAFA BARJAS: (Non-English language spoken).
ARRAF: He voted for Hoquq, linked to an Iran-backed organization on the U.S. terrorism list. He wasn't born yet when the U.S. invaded. He says Iraq can now determine its own destiny, and his main demand is that foreign military forces leave his country. The U.S. has agreed to pull out troops next year. After that, any American forces will be here as part of direct agreement with the Iraqi government.
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ARRAF: Iraq's election commission says preliminary results will be out Wednesday. But given past elections, that's optimistic. In 2021, it took two months for election results to be certified and then more than a year for a government to be formed.
For NPR News, I'm Jane Arraf in Amman, Jordan.
(SOUNDBITE OF KOETT'S "LAST NIGHT ON RIVER") Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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