“I’m hoping for a big turnout,” said Ambassador Fareed Yasseen, noting the effort put into the organization to reach the diaspora in the country.
With respect to relations between Baghdad and Washington, Yasseen said he was “quite hopeful” that relations could grow beyond the current focus on fighting ISIS.
“We are allies in the fight against ISIS and we are expecting that relationships will go beyond the fight against ISIS to cover issues like reconstruction, like development, like education,” he said.
Organizers had anticipated the Tysons polling station would be one of the busiest in the country. An estimated 300 voters had turned up by noon. The station closes at 6pm, local time.
At a polling station in Baltimore, Maryland, just three people turned up in the first half of the day. Voters told Rudaw's Roj Eli Zalla that holding the election during working hours made it difficult for some to come. A spelling error in the address on Facebook materials advertising the location also caused some confusion.
Almost 900,000 people are eligible to vote abroad. Polling stations were set up in 21 countries, according to the Iraqi electoral commission, including Jordan, Turkey, Iran, United Arab Emirates, Lebanon, Egypt, Denmark, Holland, the UK, Germany, Canada, the USA, Sweden, Australia, Norway, Austria, Finland, Belgium, and New Zealand.
Early voting for the diaspora and security personnel was held on Wednesday.
The rest of the country will go to the polls on Saturday.
