Iraqi Council of Ministers orders manual recount of five percent of votes

According to a statement released by the Prime Minister’s Office, among the recommendations approved by the Council of Ministers was a manual recount of no less than five percent of votes at all ballot stations.

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – In a meeting headed by Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi on Tuesday, the Iraqi Council of Ministers approved the recommendations of a high-level committee formed to investigate the results of the May 12 elections.

In a press conference following a Council of Ministers meeting, Abadi said his government is following up appeals made against the election results, emphasizing that the role of the judiciary and the electoral commission should be separated.

The Iraqi Prime Minister revealed that the Council of Ministers voted on the recommendations and conclusions made by the committee which had been formed to pursue the elections appeals.

According to a statement released by the Prime Minister’s Office, among the recommendations made by the committee and approved by the Council of Ministers was a manual recounting of no less than five percent of votes at all ballot stations.

The statement informed of a “cancellation of the election results abroad and votes by displaced persons for the evidenced, deliberate, and serious fraud as mentioned in the results of the high-level committee.”

The Council has assigned the Intelligence Service, the National Security Service, and Ministry of Interior’s Intelligence Services to indict those responsible for fraud and to take legal action against them according to the law.

“The Council of Ministers urges the Public Prosecutor to initiate criminal proceedings based on the report’s findings,” the statement noted.

The Council added it would submit the report to the Integrity Commission for further investigation and the start of deterrent measures.

The Council of Ministers will also send the report to the Council of Representatives to take whatever measures are necessary, the statement informed.

On May 29, the Iraqi parliament passed a seemingly non-binding resolution to cancel portions of the contested national election results and demanded a manual recount of 10 percent of the votes.

Editing by Karzan Sulaivany