Alwaght- After a several-month wait, the Iraqi Supreme Court finally ratified on Monday the disputed election results.
The Iraqi Federal Court ruling said that according to the election law, if the announced results differ by up to 5 percent from the electoral process, manual counting of votes will be on the agenda. The court ruled that the request to review the technical process of the election results review company was off the court's jurisdiction. It also stated that the Independent High Electoral Commissioner's action in announcing the election results partially was a violation of the law and that the counting of votes in the upcoming elections should be done manually, not electronically. The next parliament must also amend the current election law, it recommended.
According to the final results, the Sadrist Movement won 73 seats out of 329 parliament, coming on top. The Sunni Progress Coalition won 37 seats and the Rule of Law coalition 33 seats, ranking second and third consecutively. Also, the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) won 31 seats, the Kurdistan Coalition 17 seats, the Fatah Coalition, the Al-Azm Coalition 14 seats, and the National Government Forces Coalition led by Ammar Hakim 4 seats.
Reactions to Supreme Court ruling
Various political groups reacted to the Supreme Court's final decision on the election results.
The leader of the Fatah coalition, Hadi al-Amiri, stressed that in order to maintain stability in Iraq, he adheres to the decision of the federal court to confirm the election results.
"Because of our desire to abide by the constitution and our concern for the security and political stability of Iraq, and our belief in resolving political disputes peacefully and legally, we obey the court decision through the ballot boxes. We adhere to the decision of the Supreme Court, despite our deep conviction and our firm belief that the election process has been marred by fraud and manipulation," Al-Amiri said in a statement issued by the Iraqi Shafaq news agency, adding: "Our complaints to the court were polite, reasonable, and acceptable, and if they were submitted to the constitutional court in any country that respects democracy, it would be enough to overturn the election results, and yet our commitment to the decision of Supreme Court, which is under intense external and internal pressure, remains firm."
The Fatah Coalition, based on documents submitted to the Supreme Court, claimed widespread electoral fraud and called for its annulment. The coalition claimed, based on technical reports, that some voters' electronic fingerprints had not been read. It also complained about entry to the country of a malfunctioning new electronic device, called the "C1000", a few days before the election.
In other reactions, the Asaib Ahl Al-Haq movement, as well as Hezbollah Movement in Iraq, regretted the decision to dismiss the lawsuit despite the evidence and said that "the decision of the Iraqi Supreme Court was influenced by internal and external pressures."
But in another important reaction, Muqtada al-Sadr, the leader of the Sadrist Movement, welcomed the Supreme Court ruling, calling it "God's help and grace." He thanked "all those who took part in the national democratic celebration" and called for "the acceleration of the formation of a national majority government, neither Eastern nor Western."
Government formation after court ruling
After the announcement of the election results by the election commission, the lawmakers would choose a parliament speaker and two of his deputies in the first session with the majority bloc. The parliament has 30 days to pick a new president with presence of two-thirds of its members.
The new president nominates the candidate of the largest parliamentary bloc to form the government. The elected prime minister has 30 days to form a government and present it to parliament for a vote of confidence.
The parliament must approve the program of the government and each minister separately by a majority.
If the elected prime minister fails to form a government within 30 days, or if parliament rejects the prime minister's cabinet, the president must nominate another candidate within 15 days.
Government and political developments outlook
With the Supreme Court ruling finalized and the leaders of the political groups showing respect to it, it seems that the street protests would gradually wind down and the government formation would speed up.
Media reported that al-Amiri and al-Sadr would meet in the coming days, something signaling their closeness as they depart from the emotions of post-election atmosphere.
"In the next ten days, we can reach a conclusion," Gatee al-Rakabi, one of the leaders of the Rule of Law, told Al-Mayadeen news network. "The coalition seeks to reduce the differences between the forces and we will reach a consensus in the coming days," he went on.
The Fatah Coalition, representing the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) that entered parliament for the first time in 2018, can continue its role in the next government in alliance with one of its main partners, the Rule of Law Coalition, led by ex-Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki.
Actually, although in the recent elections, the number of seats of the Fatah and its allies decreased significantly, they are still important actors in the security and political scene. Thus, these forces will have a say in the negotiations that lead to the election of a prime minister and the formation of a cabinet in a complex political process in a multi-ethnic country.
The Shiite Coordination Framework (SCF) on Sunday introduced a 9-point initiative to "break the political stalemate," which is more of an initiative to untie the knot of forming a grand coalition by presenting a crisis resolution formula. Most of political observers believe that it is very difficult to form a national majority government that does not include all major parties. So, the initiative was presented to pave the way for an inclusive cabinet.
The solutions outlined in the initiative seek consensus of the power blocs on the future government's main plans and the participation in the formation of the cabinet for the benefit of Iraq and its people. Such plan, analysts agree, prepares the ground for obtaining positive results and exit from the current crisis the political factions are facing.
