Iraq holds its breath for election result

Iraqis anxiously awaited the final result in their parliamentary election today amid fears the expected razor-thin margin could spark violence.

The full vote tally, which comes nearly three weeks after the elections, will include the highly anticipated allocation of parliamentary seats.

Earlier results, based on 95% of ballots counted, showed Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki’s mainly Shiite bloc in a virtual tie with the alliance led by former prime minister Ayad Allawi, a Shiite who has gained heavy Sunni support.

Because neither man will come close to a majority, the victor will need to cobble together a coalition among the various factions representing Iraq’s broad range of religious and ethnic groups.

Mr Al-Maliki, who is fighting for a second four-year term, has tried to distance himself from his sectarian roots and portray himself as a nationalist who helped return stability to Iraq after years of violence.

But his support for a ban of hundreds of candidates with alleged ties to Saddam Hussein’s regime severely undercut any support he had from Sunnis, who felt the ban unfairly targeted their candidates.

Many Sunnis instead threw their weight behind Mr Allawi, a secular Shiite who has built a broad coalition drawn from both Islamic sects. Mr Allawi, who served as prime minister from 2004 to 2005, has used his anti-Iran rhetoric to appeal to Sunnis who are wary of Tehran’s influence with their Shiite-majority government.

The tight race has set the stage for protracted political wrangling over forming a new government that could spark new fighting and complicate efforts to speed up US troop withdrawals in the coming months.