Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki did not win the political majority that would have enabled him to form local governments by himself, according to the results of the local elections held in 12 Iraqi provinces. In the coming period, he will be required to engage in a fierce struggle with political blocs, some of which — even Shiite ones — are his opponents.

Preliminary results — leaked two days after the polls closed on Saturday [April 20] — show the country's religious minorities will get 6 out of 378 seats in the 12 provinces. The various dispersed Iraqi lists will get nearly 70 seats, while the Sadrist movement will win close to 50 seats. The State of Law coalition will receive 115 seats, whereas 80 seats will go to the Islamic Supreme Council of Iraq (ISCI).

These elections, in which 6,400,777 people participated in 12 provinces, resulted in a new rise of secular and liberal forces — particularly the political alliance led by the Iraqi Communist Party, which won a number of seats in each of the provinces — although they do not constitute a major force in the local councils. Yet, the decreased number of seats for Islamists, and rise of new civil forces could probably reflect a relative shift in the public’s mood.

Last year, the Iraqi parliament amended the provincial electoral law. Iraqi lawmakers, who contributed to the amendment, said that it allows small parties to be represented, based on a specific number of votes required for each seat.