More than 1.3 million Iraqis will go to the polls, with general voting taking place on Tuesday and approximately 20 million people expected to participate.
Muqtada al-Sadr, leader of the Iraqi National Shiite Movement, rejected calls for Shiite parties to participate in the parliamentary elections, reiterating that his movement would completely boycott the vote.
In a post on his X account, Sadr rejected the idea of fighting corruption with corruption, stating, ‘By voting for those with experience, we are reinforcing corruption and strengthening their dominance.’
“You are all responsible, including the security forces,” he added.
Sadr had previously withdrawn his movement from the elections, describing the process as ‘tainted by corruption’ and stating that he would not form an alliance with forces he described as ‘corrupt.’ Sadr frequently uses the term ‘corrupt’ when describing political figures in Iraq.
In the 2021 parliamentary elections, Sadr’s bloc won 73 of the 329 seats, becoming the largest group in parliament, but later instructed its MPs to resign on the grounds of ‘corruption’.