PM AGREES NOT TO DELAY DECEMBER ELECTION

C O N F I D E N T I A L BAGHDAD 004284 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 10/18/2015 TAGS: PGOV PNAT PHUM IZ SUBJECT: PM AGREES NOT TO DELAY DECEMBER ELECTION Classified By: Ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d). ¶1. (C) Prime Minister Ibrahim Jafari met with Ambassador Khalilzad and UK Ambassador William Patey on October 16 to discuss delaying the date for registration of political coalitions from October 21 to November 4 and the date of the National Assembly election from December 15 to December 29. They discussed the timing of logistical arrangements necessary to conduct the registration of coalitions and candidates, the printing and delivery of ballot materials, and the conduct of the elections themselves. ¶2. (C) After reviewing these considerations, the Prime Minister agreed with the Ambassadors that the date of the election should not change. The election will be held on December 15. Similarly, the deadline for the registration of political party coalitions will remain October 21. ¶3. (C) The Ambassadors noted that there is some flexibility on the deadline for submitting the list of candidates, whose names do not appear on the ballots themselves. The ballots themselves will just note the name and graphic symbol of the political coalition groups. At the recommendation of the UN Commissioner to the IECI, the voting members of the IECI Board of Directors have the authority to move the deadline for registration of candidate lists from October 21 to November 4 without impacting the date of the December 15 election. The Prime Minister agreed with this idea. Khalilzad