Iraq 2009 Elections Updates

Peace, high turnout reported at Iraq polls -(CNN)

Half of Iraq's eligible voters turned out for peaceful provincial elections this weekend, the election commission said Sunday.

An Iraqi man whose finger has been ink stained after voting makes a call in Baghdad.

The turnout of 7.5 million voters starkly contrasted with elections in 2005, when the violence and intimidation of al Qaeda in Iraq kept voters away from the polls and only 2 percent of eligible voters participated.

Faraj al-Haidari, the head of the Independent High Electoral Commission, called the turnout this year "very high" for provincial elections in any country. Fifty-one percent of the 14.9 million eligible voters cast ballots.

Al-Haidari called the weekend voting the "most important elections in the history of Iraq since the fall of Saddam Hussein."

Voting was held in 14 of Iraq's 18 provinces. The highest turnout -- 65 percent -- was in the Salaheddin province in northern Iraq, the commission said.

The lowest -- 40 percent -- was in Anbar, the Sunni heartland west of Baghdad. The sprawling desert area was dominated in 2005 by al Qaeda in Iraq.

Preliminary results from the electoral commission are expected within five days. Final numbers are due at the end of February.

Iraq: Security improves for Christians in Mosul - (AKI)

Security for the Christian minority in the northern Iraqi city of Mosul has improved since the wave of sectarian violence there last year, according to the only Christian candidate running in Saturday's provincial elections, Sami Habib Astifu. He spoke to Adnkronos International (AKI).

"The situation has improved markedly since the Iraqi government dispatched armed forces to the area, and things will improve further once we have a new provincial council," he said.

The Iraqi polls are significant and could set the tone for parliamentary elections planned in late 2009. They are also seen as a key test for Iraq's Shia prime minister Nouri al-Maliki.

Roundtable on Elections in Iraq - (Report With Bret Baier)

MAJ. GEN. DAVID PERKINS, U.S. MILITARY SPOKESMAN: The last big election period here in Iraq, January '05, the average number of daily attacks in Iraq was 92 a day. Yesterday, the average, we have five total attacks in Iraq.

So you see this huge improvement in security already under the leadership of the Iraqis. So, obviously, the trend is in the right direction, and they are fully committed to making sure security is such that everyone can get to the polls and vote

Elections Bringing Change to Iraq - (MNF-I)

Something new is coming to Iraq. The signs are in the air, plastered on walls, buildings, light posts lining the road and even strung between buildings.
Provincial elections are being held today, and most public structures have, in some way shape or form, campaign posters attached to them.

There have been elections in Iraq since Saddam Hussein’s fall from power, but this is the first totally Iraqi-run election. The Iraqi Security Forces and emergency services voted Jan. 28, allowing them to provide security today.

Lt. Col. Craig Simonsgaard, commander of the military transition team working with the Iraqi Army’s 44th Brigade, 11th Division, met with the brigade’s Soldiers shortly after most had voted.

“The first thing they did was hold up their index fingers,” said Simonsgaard. Purple ink on the index finger indicates that a person has voted.

“They are all extremely proud of being able to vote. They take that purple finger very serious, and they take a lot of pride in it,” said Simonsgaard.

One of those proud Soldiers was Iraqi Army Pvt. Hussain Ali Hussain.

Obama hails Iraq vote as 'step forward' - (ABC)

US President Barack Obama has praised Iraq's provincial elections as an "important step forward" for the future of the country.

"This important step forward should continue the process of Iraqis taking responsibility for their future," Mr Obama said in a statement after millions of Iraqis went to the polls to elect councils in 14 or Iraq's 18 provinces.

Security for the country's first ballot since 2005 was extremely tight, with Iraqi police and military deployed in force, and Mr Obama praised the technical assistance by the United Nations and other organisations to Iraq's electoral commission, which he said "performed professionally under difficult circumstances."

Mr Obama said "it is important that the councils get seated, select new governors and begin work on behalf of the Iraqi people who elected them."

Thank You US Military For Your Dedication & Service In Iraq - (Gateway Pundit)

Since Barack Obama would not say it let me be the one to tell the American soldiers and Marines, the private American citizens and American Allies...
Thank you for your dedication and service. Thank you for protecting the Iraqi people. Thank you for bringing democracy to Iraq. Thank you for bringing Victory to Iraq

Progress - (Sorority Soldier - in Iraq)

Once again, the Iraqis are waving purple fingers demonstrating their role in democracy. I was here during the first elections and the military played a huge part in security during that time. I was at the convention center the day of the election and it was swarming with politicians and media. I remember fighting through the crowds of Arab media to get shots of politicians speaking another language. I had no idea who they were, but when I saw the Iraqi reporters flock to them I know they must be important. The Iraqi media is ruthless and I couldn’t get a shot of one of the more popular politicians - popular based on the crowd around him. I got down on all fours and crawled through the legs of the Iraqi reporters landing myself a spot in the front, camera angled up to the politician. It probably wasn’t the best angle, but I got the shot. It was then that I really felt like a reporter.

I wanted to cover the elections so bad today, but military presence is limited. I haven’t even heard of anyone providing security for the elections, and that’s huge.

Iraqis turn out in their millions to vote in 'turning point' election (Telegraph)

The last time Iraqis voted the city was an al-Qaeda stronghold and its mosques issued bloodcurdling warnings to stay away from the polls. On Saturday clerics were using the loudspeakers once again, but this time urging the town's population to vote.

As a result, turnout seemed as high in Fallujah as elsewhere in the country as many of Iraq's 15 million voters took part in local elections held in 14 of the country's 18 provinces - everywhere except Kurdistan and the city of Kirkuk. More than 14,000 candidates stood for 440 seats in what could prove to be a turning point in Iraq's recent bloody history.

Campaigning was peaceful by recent Iraqi standards, and the Iraqi police and army forces provided all the security without calling on Coalition backup.
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As the polls closed the defence ministry hailed the fact that there had not been a major attack anywhere in the war-weary country.

Iraq's prime minister, Nouri al-Maliki, cast his vote in the security of Baghdad's protected Green Zone.

He said: "This is a victory for all the Iraqis." He told reporters that an expected high turnout will be an indicator of "the Iraqi people's trust in their government and in the elections" and "proof that the Iraqi people are now living in real security."

Live Blog: Iraq’s Provincial Elections - (Baghdad Baghdad Bureau - Mohammed Hussein)

I walked more than three miles and four polling centers to vote today. I have lived in the same neighborhood for more than 30 years, but my name was not on the list.

With the sound of hovering American helicopters filling the unusual silence on the streets I walked to the polling center nearest my house to vote. First I had to be searched and take off my wristwatch, my box of cigarettes and my mobile telephone because an American patrol was watching the main checkpoint of the polling center.

I checked my name but I could not find it. An employee told me: “You may find it at another center.” So I started walking. But the guards wouldn’t let me go straight there because of the security cordons around polling centers. My route was like a sneaky puzzle. The streets were clear of vehicles and children exploited the occasion to amuse themselves by playing football or marbles in the streets, without any notion of the importance of this day.

While I was walking to the second polling center I met a friend of mine who smiled when he saw me, hoping that I would help him find his polling center.

IRAQ: Low turnout mars Iraqi election

They may have been peaceful, but Saturday's all-important provincial elections across Iraq appear to have suffered from a combination of apathy and confusion, resulting in a turnout of only 51 percent, Iraq's Independent High Electoral Commission announced today.

The numbers are likely to be a disappointment to election officials and U.N. and U.S. officials, who have portrayed the event as a barometer of Iraq's capacity for moving beyond bloodshed and embracing democratic change. With turnouts as limited as an estimated 40 percent in some provinces, losers could charge that the election results are illegitimate.

Reasons for the low turnout vary, but one problem that emerged Saturday was with voters who showed up at polling stations only to be turned away because their names were not on voter lists.