ERBIL, Kurdistan Region — A member of Iraqi parliament on Tuesday cast doubt on parliamentary elections being held on time, describing the present date as still “uncertain” and possibly delayed again to 2022. “So far it is uncertain if elections will be held on time,” Iraqi MP for Hope Coalition Ahmad Haji Rashid told Rudaw English on Tuesday. “There are doubts in the matter, and there are claims that the election could be delayed to 2022.” Iraq had initially planned to hold early elections on June 6. However, in January, Iraq’s council of ministers decided to postpone the elections to October 10. Early elections were one of the demands of protests that began in October 2019 across central and southern Iraq. Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi asked the Independent High Electoral Commission (IHEC) in November to take “all necessary measures” to ensure the elections will be held as scheduled, and should “continuously work to guarantee a successful election.” The postponement of elections from June 6 to October 10 "is not a deviation from the principle of an early election, for it will happen in any case, and we have not compromised on early elections for it is popular demand supported by the Marja and it is part of the government's program," Kadhimi said at the time of the postponement, referring to Iraq's highest Shiite authority. “The situation is complicated as the coalitions and lists have not been finalized yet, and the commission is not ready for an election in October,” said Rashid. The IHEC decided to extend the registration period for candidates and coalitions to April 17 for candidates and May 1 for coalitions, back in February. Previously, the IHEC had extended the registration period claiming that registration was low. According to a United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI) report on Iraq’s electoral preparations, “as of 25 February, only 86 candidates had submitted their nomination papers to IHEC.” “To date, the registrations of 5 coalitions have been approved while 8 applications are still in process; a total of 249 political parties are now accredited while 58 applications are still in process,” UNAMI’s report, released on Tuesday, added. “Of these, 99 political parties have indicated their intention to participate in the upcoming election.” A further delay to the elections will likely anger several sectors of Iraqi society and political scene. Influential Shiite cleric and head of Iraqi parliament’s largest bloc Muqtada al-Sadr in January said that he would not accept elections to be postponed again after it was postponed to October. “I will not allow another postponement of the elections as long as I live,” Sadr said.
