Shiite alliance wins plurality in Iraq
From here:
http://www.cnn.com/2005/WORLD/meast/...ain/index.html
Quote:
BAGHDAD, Iraq (CNN) -- Iraqi leaders began looking ahead to forming a National Assembly and filling top posts after uncertified election results were released Sunday.
The Shiite-backed United Iraqi Alliance won a plurality of votes in the January 30 elections but fell short of an outright majority, the Independent Electoral Commission of Iraq said.
Good for them! We can hope that this is the beginning of Iraqi democracy and the beginning of the end of the factionism which so badly opresses their nation. The next quote appears to be an effort being made in that direction:
Quote:
"We are heading towards formation of a national reconciliation government," he said. "We are going to spare no time in including all communities -- Sunnis, Shia, Arab and Kurds and Turkoman and Kurdo-Assyrians, Assyrians.
Oh, and speaking of the Sunnis, I found this a bit humorous -
Quote:
Adnan Pachachi, a secular Sunni leader, told CNN he was "disappointed" that his party mustered only about 0.1 percent of the vote nationwide.
Go figure - when your faction is a religious one, and your religious leaders tell your people NOT to vote...
And of course, we should include the full voting tally here (from the same link shown above):
Quote:
IRAQI ELECTION RESULTS
# Total votes cast: 8.56 million
# Al-Sistani group: 4.08 million
# Kurdish group: 2.17 million
# Allawi group: 1.17 million
Source: Independent Electoral Commission of Iraq