The party of a nationalist Shiite cleric won the most votes in Iraq’s parliamentary elections, according to initial results. The Sadrist Movement headed by Muqtada al-Sadr appears to have more than 70 seats in the 329-member parliament, up from 54 in 2018. The party of former prime minister Nouri al-Maliki reportedly has the second-highest vote total.
Voter turnout was a record low of 41%.
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Sadr is popular for his opposition to a US presence in Iraq, which he first announced in 2003. He is the son of famous Iraqi Shia cleric, the late Grand Ayatollah Mohammad Mohammad Sadeq al-Sadr.
The parties that won seats in the election must now work to form a ruling government coalition and to name a prime minister.