Iraqi Parliament Faces Opposition and Criticism Over Election Law Changes

Shafaq News/ The Central Committee for Demonstrations in Iraq has announced a sit-in protest in front of the House of Representatives to protest against the vote on the controversial election law using the Saint-Lego system, scheduled for next Saturday's session.

The committee, in a statement, accused the government of "ignoring the opinion of the majority of the people" and called on Iraqis to join the sit-in on Friday in front of the parliament gate in the Green Zone in Baghdad.

More than 75 independent deputies oppose the bill because of the adoption of the 1.7 electoral representation formula.

The Iraqi parliament voted on seven paragraphs of the law on Monday and will complete the remaining eight in the upcoming session.

The election law in Iraq has undergone several changes over the years.

The current election law was enacted in 2019, and it governs the conduct of elections for the Iraqi parliament, the presidency, and the provincial councils.

The electoral system used in Iraq is a closed-list proportional representation system. Under this system, voters cast their ballots for a party or coalition, and seats are allocated to parties based on the percentage of the vote they receive.

Observers say this law came for the benefit of the large coalitions.

The election law in Iraq has faced criticism for various reasons, including allegations of fraud and irregularities in previous elections. However, the government has tried to address these issues and improve the electoral process.