Iraqi lawmakers passed early Monday controversial amendments to the country's election law that could undermine the chances for smaller parties and independent candidates to win seats in future polls.
The amendments increase the size of electoral districts, a move widely backed by the Co-ordination Framework, a coalition of Iran-backed parties. The coalition forms the majority bloc in the current parliament, which brought Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani to power last year.
Several Iraqi political blocs and independent parliamentarians had rejected the amendments and stalled the vote for weeks. Hundreds of protesters gathered over the past weeks to voice their opposition. "These amendments will only fortify the rulers in power and their corruption, and exclude independent and new political groups," one of the protesters, Mohamed Al-Daami, told The Associated Press. He described the amendments as "unjust."
Al-Sadr's political bloc gained 74 seats in the 2021 polls, while the Fatah Coalition, made up of Iran-backed parties, lost nearly half of its votes and more than two-thirds of its seats, compared to the 2018 polls.
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