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Iraqi PM Maliki asks for recount, warns of violence
Iraqi President Jalal Talabani, a Kurd, also issued a statement on Sunday asking the Independent High Electoral Commission (IHEC) for a recount in some provinces.
The tight race portends weeks or months of difficult negotiations ahead to form a new government, raising the prospect of a political vacuum that could set back Iraq’s fragile security gains.
“There are demands from several political blocs to manually recount the votes and to protect the democratic experience and preserve the credibility of the political process,” said Maliki, a Shiitewho won over many Iraqis with his nationalist rhetoric and steps to crush sectarian violence.
“I call on the High Electoral Commission to respond immediately to the demands of those blocs to preserve the political stability and prevent the security situation from deteriorating and avoid the return of violence,” he added in a statement issued late on Saturday.
Iraq’s divided vote is a reminder of the country’s precarious democracy as it emerges from the shadow of war and years of sectarian slaughter unleashed by the 2003 US-led invasion that toppled Saddam Hussein.
Violence fell sharply over the past two years but a tenacious insurgency keeps Iraq under siege as US troops prepare to withdraw by 2012.
Need for recount questioned
Faraj al-Haidari, head of the electoral commission, said members would meet on Sunday to discuss Maliki’s demand but questioned the need for a recount.
“Why should we respond to do a manual counting? Why? For what reason?” Haidari said. “If there is a glitch, they can file a complaint and say there was a glitch in that station. They say they want a manual count, but this is up to the commissioners’ board to decide. We do an accurate electronic count.”
The vote counting process has been dogged by allegations of fraud and irregularities.
Supporters of Maliki’s State of Law coalition complained of vote fraud last week and asked for a recount in Baghdad after initial results showed their candidate trailing the Iraqiya bloc led by Allawi, a Shiite former prime minister with wide support among minority Sunnis.
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