Al-Sadr ties election return to sweeping reforms in Iraq

Shafaq News – Najaf

Muqtada al-Sadr, head of the Patriotic Shiite Movement (PSM), will only reconsider boycotting Iraq’s November parliamentary elections if sweeping reforms are enacted and senior officials are replaced, a PSM official revealed on Sunday.

Saleh Mohammed al-Iraqi, known as the “Leader's Minister,” relayed al-Sadr’s view that “the real alternative to boycotting the elections is to uproot the current leadership, opening the way for reform and closing the path of subservience and dependency.” He tied any return to tightening Iraq's borders and resisting external agendas, while also addressing uncontrolled weapons, political repression, and shortages of water and electricity.

Meanwhile, a source close to the PSM told Shafaq News that al-Sadr and his supporters view the boycott as a peaceful tool of pressure and a response to corruption, which they argue derailed earlier attempts to influence the system from within.

“Neither al-Sadr nor his followers will back candidates who lack an independent, patriotic program.”

Al-Sadr withdrew from the political process in June 2022, ordering the resignation of his 73 lawmakers and declaring he would not ally with what he called “corrupt politicians.” In March 2025, he reaffirmed his decision not to contest the upcoming elections, warning that Iraq was “breathing its last.”

Read more: Iraq's political crossroads: Al-Sadr's boycott, Al-Hakim's mediation