Voting began in Iraq on Monday in the first elections for provincial councils in a decade, with the ruling Shi'ite Muslim alliance likely to extend its grip on power amid a boycott by populist cleric Moqtada al-Sadr, its main political rival.
Sadr's Shi'ite rivals, who blocked his bid to form a government after he emerged as a winner in 2021 parliamentary polls, are likely to take control of most local councils, especially in the mainly Shi'ite southern provinces. This would further consolidate the power of the ruling Shi'ite alliance which is close to Iran, known as the Coordination Framework, deepening their power via access to state oil wealth that can be spent on local projects and services.
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