Political Parties

Significant Iraqi Political Parties

Although Shia leader Ayatollah Sistani had opposed the formation of political organizations, he approved the formation of a Shia-dominated coalition, the United Iraqi Alliance, to contest the parliamentary elections of January 2005. In the early post-Saddam Hussein years, the two major formal Shia parties were the Supreme Council for the Islamic Revolution (SCIRI) and Islamic Dawa (known as Dawa). SCIRI maintains close ties in Iran, commands a militia force of 10,000, and seeks a strong political role for the Islamic clergy. Since its return from exile in Iran in 2003, SCIRI had projected a more pluralistic image in a successful effort to broaden its support. It has supported the U.S. presence in Iraq and the 2005 parliamentary elections. Dawa began in 1958 as an Islamic revolutionary party, existed in exile during the Hussein regime, and emerged as an advocate of Islamic reform and modernization of religious institutions.

In the parliamentary elections of January 2005, the United Iraqi Alliance gained 140 of the 275 seats contested, and Dawa leader Ibrahim al Jafari was named prime minister of the transitional government. A majority of the ministries of Iraq’s central government — once controlled by the Ba’ath Party, but largely staffed by technocrats — became aligned with, and then dominated by, competing political parties. Sadrists seized the Health and Education ministries. Employing the model of service delivery embraced by Hezbollah — the radical Islamic Shi’a group based in Lebanon — they openly deployed ministry resources to build support among the Shi’a underclass. At the same time, SCIRI, the largest Shi’a political party, took control of the Ministry of the Interior — and its powerful internal security apparatus — and later the Ministry of Finance. The major Sunni party, the Iraqi Accord Front, would exert a lesser degree of control over the newly formed Ministry of Defense. Who received services and who did not was increasingly decided on the basis of political allegiance and sectarian identity. The capture of central ministries by political parties had enduring consequences for reconstruction and for the development of a functioning Iraqi state.

For the 2010 election, there were 276 political entities registered to participate in the elections. Most choose to form coalitions either before or after the elections. According to the Independent High Electoral Commission (IHEC), of 107 electoral lists, 39 will be coalitions and 68 will be independent entities.

As of September 2012, the U.S. government had obligated $1.91 billion and expended $1.82 billion to strengthen democratic governance and civil society in Iraq. Political imbroglios aside, the peaceable execution of multiple democratic elections in Iraq is a reconstruction success story.

The U.S. reconstruction program inadvertently fostered a “triangle of political patronage," involving political parties, government officials, and sectarian groups. This lethal axis fomented a brew of terrorism and corruption that poisoned the country. The unrestrained growth of corruption allowed it to become an “institution unto itself in Iraq." This substantially diminished the potential for reconstruction efforts to have a positive effect. The existence of militias, al-Qaeda gangs, and the reliance of Americans on certain Iraqi political parties caused the emergence of sectarian controversies that hindered Iraqi governance. Sectarian groups became embedded in most of the country’s ministries and institutions, impeding progress. Additionally, foreign interference in Iraq’s matters weakened the national political stance, resulting in a country that lacked a free political administration focused on the needs of the Iraqi people.

Resources

• Iraq Elections 2010
• The Official Coalition List Is Out
• Iraqi Leaders
• After Sadr-Badr Compromise in Tehran, the Iraqi National Alliance (INA) Is Declared By Reidar Visser - 24 August 2009
• The Unity of Iraq Alliance: Another Second-Generation Coalition By Reidar Visser - 21 October 2009
• Maliki Re-Launches the State of Law List: Beautiful But Is It Powerful Enough? By Reidar Visser - 1 October 2009
• Where is Iraq headed? Dr. Phebe Marr - Testimony Senate Foreign Relations Committee January 10, 2007
• Association of Muslim Clerics
• Assyrian Democratic Movement
• Assyrian National Congress
• Assyrian Socialist Party
• Bayt al-Nahrayn Democratic Party
• Constitutional Monarchy Movement
• Iraqi Communist Party
• Iraqi Islamic Party
• Iraqi National Accord
• Iraqi National Congress
• Islamic Al-Da'wah Party
• Kurdish Democratic Party
• Movement for Sacred National Defense
• Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK)
• Supreme Council for the Islamic Revolution in Iraq (SCIRI)
• Turkoman People's Party
• Iraqi Parliament