Iraq’s Parliament Restores Electoral Laws, Sparking Anger from Independent Lawmakers
Date
3/27/2023 6:56:11 AM
(MENAFN) Iraq's parliament has voted to restore electoral laws that were scrapped after the 2019 anti-government demonstrations, sparking anger from independent lawmakers who see it benefiting larger parties. The new law revives the electoral law of 2018 and sweeps away one of the gains of the mass protest movement that shook Iraq. Under the new system, independent candidates emerged, with some 70 independents winning seats in the 329-member parliament in the last legislative elections in 2021.
However, the new law removes 83 electoral districts and creates 18 seats, one for each of Iraq's provinces. This change "makes it easier for top party politicians to win seats," according to analyst Sajad Jiyad on Twitter. Conversely, it will make it "harder for candidates in smaller parties and independents to compete" because they will be running at a provincial rather than a local level. During the debate, several angry independent lawmakers were expelled from the debating chamber, according to videos they filmed themselves.
The changes will benefit the larger parties and make it possible "for their candidates who didn't get enough votes initially to win seats," Jiyad added. "Independent candidates will no longer have any hope of obtaining representation in parliament," said Alaa Al-Rikabi, an independent lawmaker. "They will be crushed."
Parliament is dominated by the Coordination Framework, an alliance of powerful pro-Iran Shiite factions, from whose ranks Prime Minister Mohammed Shia Al-Sudani emerged. The new law replaces a first past the post system with proportional representation. It is not clear how many lawmakers voted for the restoration of the 2018 law as parliament did not detail the votes.
The move has sparked anger among independent lawmakers who see it as a setback for democracy in Iraq. The restoration of the old law goes against the demands of the anti-government protesters who called for a new electoral law that would ensure fair representation for all Iraqis. The changes made to the law will make it harder for independent candidates to compete and will benefit the larger parties, which is a step backward for democracy in Iraq.
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