IHEC outlines timeline for appeals, begins response

BAGHDAD — Iraq’s Independent High Electoral Commission said Saturday it will begin preparing responses this week to appeals submitted following the announcement of final parliamentary election results.

Jumana Al-Ghalai, the commission’s spokesperson, told the Iraqi News Agency that under Law No. 31 of 2019, IHEC has seven working days to prepare answers for the judicial panel reviewing the appeals.

She added that the judicial panel then has 10 working days to issue rulings on the submitted challenges.

Once all appeals are resolved, Ghalai said, the judicial panel will send the final results to the Federal Supreme Court for ratification.

According to Ghalai, a total of 872 appeals have been submitted. The commission had previously confirmed the end of the appeals submission period on Thursday after receiving more than 800 challenges.

The IHEC released the final election results on Monday, confirming turnout above 56 percent and publishing the distribution of all 329 parliamentary seats across the country’s 18 governorates.

Iraq’s Federal Supreme Court ruled Monday that the current parliament’s term has ended and that the cabinet formed under it is now restricted to caretaker functions only, responding to a request from President Abdul Latif Rashid.