Originally published March 11, 2010 at 8:50 a.m., updated March 11, 2010 at 8:50 a.m.
BAGHDAD, March 11 (UPI) -- Early results in Iraq's elections indicated Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki's coalition likely would win a plurality in a very tight race, officials said.
As the preliminary results from Sunday's elections were being prepared to be announced publicly, a coalition of Shiite parties challenged the vote-counting process, questioning both its transparency and the computerized system used to tabulate the ballots, The New York Times reported Thursday.
Ahmed Chalabi, a leader of the Shiite coalition Iraqi National Alliance, demanded candidates be given an accounting of the votes before they released to the public so any concerns could be addressed.
Iyad Allawi, a former prime minister and leader of the Iraqiya coalition, was running a close second to Maliki. Chalabi's coalition was running third.
Officials said it wasn't clear how long the challenge would delay the release of the preliminary results, the Times said.
Election officials warned that preliminary results may change as more areas report their results.
Meanwhile, an internal assessment by the U.S. military determined at least 37 people died in 136 attacks during the voting, The Washington Post reported.
Although U.S. officials initially hailed Sunday's balloting as milestone that experienced little disruption, the assessment concluded that dozens of people died in acts of violence such as bomb blasts, rocket attacks and small-arms fire, the Post said.
The internal assessment doesn't jive with public statements by senior military officials, reported the Post, which obtained the data. On Monday, Gen. Ray Odierno, the top U.S. commander in Iraq, praised Iraqi security forces on election day, saying only "two significant incidents" were recorded.
Comments
Use the comment form below to begin a discussion about this content.