ELECTIONS - AROUND IRAQ BIG TURNOUT, LIMITED

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 BAGHDAD 005019

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 12/15/2015
TAGS: KDEM KISL PGOV PINR PINS IZ
SUBJECT: ELECTIONS - AROUND IRAQ BIG TURNOUT, LIMITED
VIOLENCE AND CLAIMS OF IRREGULARITIES

REF: BAGHDAD 5010

Classified By: POLITICAL COUNSELOR ROBERT S. FORD FOR
REASONS 1.4 (B) AND (D).


1. (C) Summary and Comment: Here follows a review, as of
18:00, of today's events in various parts of Iraq. PRTs
and SETs will submit individual analyses as well. Overall,
turnout was high across Iraq, including in troubled Anbar
province in the West. The election commission extended
official polling station hours nationally to give more
people time to vote. Violence throughout Iraq was limited.
Political parties had election observers out in force and
have collected many allegations of irregularities. None of
the allegations are particularly striking for a new
democratic system, but they will take time for the election
commission to sort through. End Summary and Comment.

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Anbar Province
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2. (C) Voter turnout across Anbar Province was relatively
high. Marines at Ramadi checkpoints, for example, could
hear calls this morning from the al Masjid Kadi Mosque and
the al Nora Mosque urging people to vote. PolOffs in
Ramadi and Fallujah reported that people wore their fine
clothes in a festive atmosphere as they made their way to
the polling sites. Fallujah leaders called today an
"Election Wedding in the city." However, voter turnout was
low in a few areas such as Hit, where insurgency presence
continues to intimidate voters.


3. (C) There were no major security incidents in all of
Anbar Province - a notable achievement. The Iraqi Police
did very well. In Fallujah, the security plan - local
security forces at the polling stations with Iraqi Police
at an outer perimeter and Coalition Forces out of sight and
available only in an emergency - was successful again, as
it was during the October referendum. In Ramadi, there were
no violent attacks other than one mortar round at 0700
local time with no injuries. In western Anbar, a local
military unit reported 10 mortar rounds in the vicinity of
the Baghdadi polling site. Voting operations were not
affected and the reported 500 voters in line remained in
place. No injuries or damages were reported.


4. (C) There was one confirmed report of ballot tampering
by two local IECI officials at an Iraqi Special Force (ISF)
base outside Ramadi on December 14. ISF personnel found
two IECI officials filling out ballots. The ISF informed
Coalition Force and IECI officials. The IECI officials were
apprehended by the ISF. (Note: The local IECI officials
were likely Sunni Arabs, and the ISF troops who turned them
in were likely Shia.)


5. (C) Reports of ballot shortages in Fallujah were
exaggerated, according to the SET. The issue was a
shortage of ballot boxes rather than ballots. IECI
headquarters agreed to allow 1,200 ballots in boxes- above
usual 600. Local leaders sent an alarmist message that
thousands of Fallujans could not vote. IECI/UN advisor
Mark Strong reported to Poloff that all issues related to
the ballot box problem were adequately resolved. (The IECI
also extended voting hours nationally to 18:00 local, vice
17:00, in order to give polling stations more time.)

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Kirkuk
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6. (C) Voter turnout at 1700 in Kirkuk Province is
estimated to be high. In all polling stations visited there
was a steady flow of voters. The lines were manageable and
no one complained of an extensive wait time. Some voters,
although not in large numbers, were turned away from the
polling centers because their names did not appear on
either the corrected voter list or the supplemental list.
The atmosphere at all visited polling centers was festive
and light-hearted. Security was good with no reported
incidents.


7. (C) There were charges of voters using forged
documents although when questioned for specifics, the
observers usually backed down from their original
estimation to a much lesser number. One NGO observer
reported and it was confirmed by the polling center manager
that six individuals had been caught trying to wipe the ink
from their finger and re-vote. Others reported that some
had voted two or three times and that underage youth had
been allowed to vote. It was confirmed at one center that
some youth had tried to vote, were caught, and expelled
from the center.

8. (C) In an emergency meeting December 15 of Baghdad
IECI Commissioner Adil Al-Lami and Kirkuk IECI officials
(with transport provided quickly by MNF-I),a solution was
agreed to by all in the early afternoon that allowed voters
at nine identified polling centers to vote if they
presented their ration card proving residency and normal
identification required of other voters. Political parties
were responsible for spreading the news to their
constituents which included Kurds, Turcomans, and Arabs.

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Mosul
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9. (C) Although far from perfect, in Ninewa the election
went reasonably well. The worst case scenarios - a
meltdown of the complicated voting system or open clashes
between Arabs and Kurds - did not happen. Voter turnout
appeared to be good and it appears that the bulk of the
people who wanted to vote were able to do so. Voting sites
were open, sufficient ballots were in place at most sites,
and security arrangements came together as planned.
There were some incidents of violence - an IED killed one
in Mosul, two mortar attacks in Tal Afar killed two and
injured several, an RPG was fired at a polling site but
caused no injuries, a grenade exploded in southern Ninewa
with no casualties - but there was nothing approaching a
major incident causing great loss of life. The atmosphere
varied but in many places REO Mosul visited it was festive,
particularly in the morning. On-site inspections conducted
by PRT staff gave us a generally positive impression of the
process, both in terms of public participation and election
preparations.


10. (C) On the other hand, complaints by Kurds, Arabs and
minorities against each other were more heated than in
October. At one point, it appeared that Kurds were on the
verge of actually occupying a polling site. In particular,
the Kurds were incensed over the failure of the IECI to
provide special measures to allow displaced Kurdish voters
to cast ballots.


11. (C) Furthermore, they claimed that IECI staff were
biased against Kurds. Some Arabs countered that the IECI
had intentionally set up the system in order to
disenfranchise Sunni voters. One thing that is clear is
that the complicated voting procedure did result in many
people being turned away, unable to cast ballots. Until
the national IECI decided to relax the rules at midday,
some percentage of the voters left empty handed.
Nonetheless, the bottom line is that most of the people in
Ninewa were given the opportunity to vote and a large
percentage of them did so.

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Kurdistan Regional Government
--------------


12. (C) Turnout in Sulaymaniyah appeared to be noticeably
higher than for the referendum. They also experienced the
problem, although to a lesser degree, of missing voter
names on the registered list. Many vehicles were on the
road without stickers, a violation of the vehicular curfew.


13. (C) Incidents of IECI officials "helping" individuals
to vote was reported by an NGO observer and personally
witnessed in one polling center by the Deputy British
Consul General. The IECI official went behind the voting
area, marked the ballot, handed it back to the voter and
then escorted him to the ballot box and ink well.


14. (C) Turnout in Erbil was light earlier in the day but
picked up later. Peak hours appeared to have been from 1100
hours to 1500 hours. Wait times to vote were reported to be
as long as 30 minutes towards the end of this period. No
such lines were visible earlier in the day. Missing names
on the voter rolls was also a problem in Erbil. A couple
of centers said they had turned away hundreds of people who
were not registered. Security at most polling centers was
very tight with even our PolOffs and the British Consul
General reporting undergoing a body search upon entrac.
Alhough ecurity was tight, it was not overly aggressive
and no reported sightings of KDP security or Peshmerga
forces around the centers. Many political party and
independent observers were at the polling centers. There
was no indication of any political party campaigning or
posters. Only IECI posters explaining the electoral process
were in evidence. No problems were reported with the voting
process.

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South Central
--------------


15. (C) REO Hilla reported that the overall outcome in
South Central was positive. Some voters in Karbala dressed
up to celebrate the occasion. Voters were carrying
pictures of SISTANI and some youth were chanting in support
of 555. One unconfirmed report claims early exit polling
in Karbala indicates 95 percent support for 555. Turnout
in Najaf was also strong, with reports of widespread
support for 555. The security situation remained stable
throughout the day.

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Southern Iraq
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16. (C) REO Basrah confirmed large turnouts throughout
Maysan, Dhi Qar, Al-Basra and Al-Muthanna. REO Basrah
estimates that 60-75 percent of the voters in many of the
polling centers were women. The South remained calm
throughout the day despite lingering anger in the region
over the 14 December al-Jazeera broadcast deemed critical
of the marjai'ya (ref). The atmosphere was celebratory,
with voters turning out in their "Eid" clothes. Assistance
was provided by the police and members of the public to
enable elderly and handicapped voters at Um Qasr and other
polling centers in the Basrah area to participate in the
election. There was a strong police presence in Basrah
city. There were few lines in Dhi Qar; lines in al-
Muthanna, Maysan, and al-Basrah moved briskly. In Maysan,
mosques urged people to vote without pointing them to a
particular party. Most voters who were willing to speak to
REO Basrah FSNs reported voting for 555, with a few
reporting voting for 731.


17. (C) Although the result was positive overall, there
were reports of a few problems. In Maysan, groups of
protesters gathered near polling stations chanting in favor
of UIA (List555) and against Al Jazeera, but they did not
block voter access. The Al Hurra news channel in Maysan
reported Iraqi police trucks with loud speakers were urging
people to voter for SISTANI and List 555. A local NGO
reported similar activity in Basrah. A Danish NGO observer
in Basrah reported inappropriate campaign activity on
behalf of the UIA (List555) at several polling stations.
The deputy director of Al Manarah Newspaper reported that
small groups of Fadilla party supporters carrying posters
of SISTANI and Yacoubi were marching around and entering
polling stations in Basrah. A Basrah poloff observed
"family voting" (male head of household voting on behalf of
his family) at one polling station, an activity ignored by
the manager of that polling station. Al Hurra TV reported
that 400 employees in the North Alrymella oil field were
still waiting for IECI Baghdad permission to vote as of
1645 (Basrah).

KHALILZAD