As votes were being counted in Iraq’s first election since defeating Islamic State, current prime minister Haider al-Abadi urged his supporters to respect the results of Monday’s poll.
“I call on Iraqis to respect the results of the elections,” he said in a national address Monday, vowing to keep the country safe under his command until a new government is formed.
Partial election returns from Iraq’s first national poll since defeating Islamic State show Muslim cleric Moqtada al-Sadr as the frontrunner.
Hundreds of supporters of Shi'ite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr took to the streets of Baghdad Sunday night, celebrating the announcement of the partial results of Iraq's parliamentary elections.
Al-Sadr himself did not run in the election, but he holds sway over a coalition ticket that won by a large margin in the capital, Baghdad.
A victory by al-Sadr’s coalition would be a significant blow to the re-election campaign of al-Abadi.
If the results hold, al-Sadr, a strident critic of the United States, could have significant influence on who will become Iraq’s next leader.