2013 Al Anbar governorate election explained

Election Name:2013 Al Anbar governorate election
Country:Iraq
Type:parliamentary
Ongoing:no
Previous Election:2009 Al Anbar governorate election
Previous Year:2009
Next Election:2017 Al Anbar governorate council election
Next Year:2017
Seats For Election:All 30 seats for the al-Anbar Governorate council
Turnout:49.5%[1] (9.5%)
Governor of Al Anbar
Posttitle:Subsequent Governor
Before Election:Qasim Al-Fahdawi
Before Party:Independent (politician)
After Election:Ahmed Khalaf Dheyabi
After Party:Iraqi Islamic Party

The Al Anbar governorate election of 2013 was held on 20 June 2013 alongside elections for Nineveh.

Background

Whilst elections for 13 of Iraq's 18 governorates were held on 20 April, elections in the governorates of Al Anbar and Nineveh were delayed due to security concerns arising from the ongoing insurgency and Sunni-led protests.[2]

Campaign

Entities

A total of 17 political parties and coalitions contested the election, fielding a total of 548 candidates.[3] The top four most popular groups were;

Mutahidun (The United)

Mutahidun is a major political force in Ninewa and Anbar, including in its ranks former finance minister Rafia al-Issawi's Future Gathering and tribal leader Ahmed Abu Risha's Awakening (Sahwa) Conference in addition to the Iraqi Islamic Party (IIP). The main leaders of the Mutahidun List were the two Nujaifi brothers; Usama and Atheel. The Nujaifis are not from Al Anbar, however, and so had formed these political alliances to garner more votes. In Anbar, tribal dynamics and locale trump politics and ideology, which, by contrast, are more prominent in Nineveh. The groups composing the Uniters List in Anbar had collectively won 14 seats in the 2009 elections.[3]

Aabiroun Coalition

Aabiroun looked likely to win seats in the run up to the election. Led by then incumbent governor Mohammed Qassim al-Fahdawi, the coalition was composed of nine groups and mostly relied on popular appeal deriving from Fahdawi's tenure as governor.[3]

Arabian Al Iraqia

Deputy Prime Minister Saleh al-Mutlaq competed under the Arab Iraqiyya coalition, consisting of six groups. The al-Hal movement ran as part of the coalition in both Anbar and Ninawa. The two groups had won a total of 9 seats at the previous election, however in the run up to the election Mutlaq had suffered from a declining popularity in Anbar.

Al Iraqia National and United Coalition

The Al Iraqia National and United Coalition is led by former Prime Minister Ayad Allawi and consists of 19 groups. The coalition won two seats in the 2009 elections. The elections will indicate Allawi’s political longevity among Iraqi Sunnis.[3]

Results

An IHEC spokesman announced the results on 27 June 2013, with the United List led by Iraqi parliamentary speaker Usama al-Nujayfi coming first, with 8 of the 30 seats. The Aabiroun Coalition; a bloc backed by Prime Minister Nour al-Maliki, came second with 5 seats.[4]

Muhammad Mahdi al-Salih, the former Minister of Trade under Saddam Hussein, was rumoured to be a candidate supported by the Uniters List for the position of Governor of Anbar.[5] [6] The Uniters List later denied the rumours.[7]

Ahmed Khalaf Dheyabi, a protest organizer from the Iraqi Islamic Party and a member of the Uniters List, was eventually chosen as the new Governor.[8]

|- style="background-color:#E9E9E9"!align="left" colspan=2 valign=top|Party/Coalition!! Allied national parties !! Leader !! Seats !! Change !! Votes !! % !! ±%|-|bgcolor="#0D4E76"||align=left|Muttahidoon ||align=left|al-Hadba
National Future Gathering
Anbar Salvation Council
Iraqi Islamic Party || align=left|Usama al-Nujayfi
Rafi al-Issawi
Ahmed Abu Risha || 8 || 6 || 115,605 || 27.89% || 6.17%|-||align=left|Aabiroun Coalition || || align=left|Qasim Al-Fahdawi || 5 || || 62,581 || 15.10% |||-|bgcolor="#00009F"||align=left|Arabian Al Iraqia || align=left|Iraqi National Dialogue Front
al-Hal || align=left|Saleh al-Mutlaq || 4 || 5 || 57,332 || 13.83% || 10.56%|-|bgcolor="#098DCD"||align=left|Al Iraqia National and United Coalition || align=left|Iraqi National Accord || align=left|Ayad Allawi || 3 || 1 || 39,500 || 9.53% || 2.73%|-||align=left|Al Anbar United Coalition || || align=left|Kamil al-Dulaymi || 3 || || 35,214 || 8.49% |||-||align=left|National Cooperation Coalition || || align=left|Ali Farhan || 2 || || 32,718 || 7.89% |||-||align=left|People’s Will Project || || align=left|Sheikh Mohamad Daham Al Farhan || 2 || || 25,210 || 6.08% |||-||align=left|Iraq's Affluents || || align=left|Sheikh Jamal Al Jadaan || 1 || || 10,785 || 2.60% |||-||align=left|Amiroun Coalition || || align=left|Ahmad Raja || 1 || || 9,220 || 2.22% |||-||align=left|Valiants of Iraq Bloc || || align=left|Sheikh Majed Ali Al Sulayman || 1 || || 8,932 || 2.15% |||-|bgcolor="#F6BE22"||align=left|Iraq’s Benevolence and Generosity List || || align=left|Dr Rushdi Said || || || || |||-|bgcolor="#286F42"||align=left|Islamic Dawa Party - Iraq Organization || || align=left|Hashim Al-Mosawy || || || || |||-||align=left|Arabs' Frontier || || align=left|Sheikh Karab Bin Ali Al Samrad || || || || |||-||align=left|Iraq's Glory Coalition || || align=left|Iyad Munjed Al Sulayman || || || || |||-||align=left|Al Anbar Citizens' Unified Coalition || || align=left|Abdul Salam Raja Nawaf || || || || |||-|bgcolor="#DDDDDD"||align=left|Najem Abdullah Ahmad Saleh ||align=left|Independent || || || || || |||-|colspan=2 align=left| Total || || || 30 || 1 || 414,554 || 100% |-|colspan=8 align=left|Sources: al-Sumaria - al-Anbar Coalitions, ISW, Anbar Final Results - IHEC, Anbar Final Candidate Vote Results - IHEC

Notes and References

  1. http://www.ncciraq.org/en/breaking-news/item/1200-al-shorfa-ballot-counting-begins-in-ninawa-and-anbar Al Shorfa ballot counting begins in Ninawa and Anbar
  2. News: Two Iraqi policemen dead in attacks during provincial elections . Al-Akhbar . 20 June 2013 . 21 June 2013 . https://web.archive.org/web/20130622043717/http://english.al-akhbar.com/content/two-iraqi-policemen-dead-attacks-during-provincial-elections . 22 June 2013 . dead .
  3. News: The Ninewa and Anbar Elections and the future of Iraq's Sunni Leadership . Ahmed Ali . Institute for the Study of War . 22 June 2013 . 31 August 2013.
  4. News: Sunni list wins largest bloc in elections in Iraq's volatile Anbar province . AP . Fox News . 27 June 2013 . 31 August 2013.
  5. News: Uniters candidate Muhammad Mahdi al-Salih, Minister of Commerce under the Saddam Regime, for the position of Governor of Anbar . https://archive.today/20130831192847/http://www.nakhelnews.com/pages/news.php?nid=27575 . dead . 31 August 2013 . Nakhel News . 19 July 2013 . 31 August 2013 .
  6. News: Nomination of former regime Minister of Commerce for post of Governor of Anbar Province . Amjad Salah, Ammar al-Ani . Al Sumaria . 19 July 2013 . 31 August 2013.
  7. News: Motahidon denies nominating Salih for Anbar Governor Post . Ahmed Hussein . Iraqi News . 20 July 2013 . 31 August 2013.
  8. News: Maliki Eyes Third Term: 2013 Iraq Update #34 . Stephen Warrick . Institute for the Study of War . 29 August 2013 . 31 August 2013.