Iraq May Postpone Snap Parliamentary Elections Until April - Lawmaker

Snap legislative elections in Iraq, scheduled for October this year, may be pushed back until April 2022 due to a boycott by a number of political parties, including the bloc of influential Shiite politician Muqtada al-Sadr, lawmaker Mohammed al-Khalidi told Sputnik

BAGHDAD (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 26th August, 2021) Snap legislative elections in Iraq, scheduled for October this year, may be pushed back until April 2022 due to a boycott by a number of political parties, including the bloc of influential Shiite politician Muqtada al-Sadr, lawmaker Mohammed al-Khalidi told Sputnik.

"The elections cannot be held as scheduled due to the al-Sadr bloc's refusal to participate ... A meeting of the heads of state, parliament and government with the leaders of political parties will take place on Sunday to determine the future of the elections. The decision to postpone the elections may be announced after this meeting," al-Khalidi said.

The vote may be delayed until April 21, according to the lawmaker.

An Iraqi political source told Sputnik earlier this week that Prime Minister Mustafa Al-Kadhimi may postpone the elections if al-Sadr does not abandon his decision to boycott them.

In July 2020, Al-Kadhimi called snap elections to Iraq's unicameral parliament, the Council of Representatives, for June 6, 2021. Legislators, however, did not manage to conclude voting on the issue of Constituencies in a number of provinces. The vote was then rescheduled for October 10.

The previous parliamentary elections took place in May 2018.