In Iraq Elections, Rich Parties get Richer on State Funds

http://www.juancole.com/2014/04/elections-parties-richer.html

In Iraq Elections, Rich Parties get Richer on State Funds
By Juan Cole | Apr. 5, 2014
(By Mustafa Habib | Baghdad | Niqash)

Election posters are everywhere now that campaigning has officially started.

Campaigning for Iraq’s general elections officially began this week on April 1. And several trends are already noticeable. The bigger the posters the better. Local politicians are doing a lot of door knocking. And nobody seems to want to share their constructive plans for the country’s future – they’re more interested in criticising their opponents.

Within hours of the official start of campaigning for Iraq’s general elections, due to be held at the end of the month, the streets of every major city were, quite literally, full of campaign posters. It seemed as if the various parties were not just in a race to win votes, they were also racing to occupy the most visible parts of each city with their campaign materials.

The general elections, the first to be held since US forces left the country, will take place on April 30 and will see around 9040 candidates competing for 328 seats in Baghdad’s Parliament, within 39 major coalitions, with Shiite Muslim, Sunni Muslim and Kurdish being the main flavours.