Iraqi women make gains in parliamentary elections
The strong showing of female candidates during the April 30 Iraqi elections reflect a change in this traditionally male-dominated society.
During the Iraqi parliamentary elections held April 30, female candidates outperformed many of their male peers and transformed themselves into key players in the electoral scene. In the previous elections, there were 73 female candidates, while on the April 30 elections, there were 83.
According to the Independent High Electoral Commission in Iraq, 22 out of 83 total female members of parliament (out of a total of 328 seats), won their parliamentary seats without relying on the quota system. However, only three out of these 22 women won through independent votes and not through the votes granted to their lists.
Hanan Fatlawi, a candidate from the Babil province for the State of Law Coalition led by Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, ranked first among female candidates with 90,781 votes. She also came in seventh place overall and was the only woman listed among the top winners. Most of the rest was occupied by leaders of coalitions, with Maliki at the top with 721,782 votes.
In accordance with the amended Sainte-Lague method, like other coalition leaders, Fatlawi's winning of more votes than needed to secure a seat contributed to the victories of other male candidates on the State of Law list in Babil.
