UN Envoy praises Iraq’s electoral process
Shafaq News – Baghdad
United Nations representative in Iraq, Mohamed Al-Hassan, on Tuesday pointed to growing international satisfaction with Iraq’s electoral process, noting that citizens’ votes remain the foundation of legitimacy.
At a press conference, Al-Hassan welcomed the strong voter turnout, including during the special voting day, and praised the dedication of the Independent High Electoral Commission (IHEC) in securing a transparent and smooth electoral process.
بيان صحفيبعثة الأمم المتحدة لمساعدة العراقمكتب الممثل الخاص للأمين العام للأمم المتحدةنشكركم على حضور هذا المؤتمر الصحفي في هذا اليوم المشهود في المسيرة الديمقراطية للعراق. صباح هذا اليوم، تشرفنا بزيارة إلى عدد من مراكز الاقتراع في بغداد، وسأقوم مساءً هذا اليوم كذلك بزيارة… pic.twitter.com/pRXJAKexVG
— UNAMI (@UNIraq) November 11, 2025
“Citizens are freely choosing their representatives,” he added, stressing that corruption has no place in the process and that “now is the time for Iraq to move beyond negative influences.”
Al-Hassan noted that while the UN mission had previously monitored around 13 electoral processes in Iraq, the current vote is fully managed by Iraqis, which he described as “evidence of the significant institutional progress Iraq has achieved.”
Read more: Iraq’s elections under a shrinking lens: international oversight fades away
Polls opened earlier on Tuesday for Iraq’s sixth parliamentary elections, with 20,063,773 eligible voters across 18 provinces. The election features 31 coalitions, 38 political parties, and 75 independent lists competing under a proportional representation system.
Read more: Iraq’s 2025 poll: +21M voters, new law,fading monitors, and fierce bloc rivalries
