Special Elections Report: Support To The Election Administration
Highlights
The Independent Election Commission of Iraq developed its regulatory and administrative structure with the support of a USAID assistance program.
On the morning of January 30th Iraqi staff of the USAID mission were at first reluctant to leave their posts in the Green Zone to visit polling stations to vote. As the day went on, and reports came in of the general enthusiasm of the Iraqi people for the electoral process and the almost celebratory nature of the days' proceedings, the Iraqi staff became anxious to leave their posts and cast their votes. The staff made their way to a polling station in the Green Zone, voted and came back to the USAID Mission compound in high spirits, happy to have taken part in the historical process. | 
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Election Information Sharing Conference in Kirkuk
The Independent Electoral Commission of Iraq (IECI) worked with USAID technical experts working under UN leadership to facilitate the development of an interim voters list, to assist in the building of a national field infrastructure which included the establishment of Governorate, sub-Governorate and local election IECI offices, to provide emergency commodities and procurement support where necessary.
One activity involved the organization of a conference on the electoral process for 46 participants from 27 parties. Kirkuk IECI officials, with the support of internation partners, gave a detailed presentation at this conference on voting and registration procedures, including an explanation of how to complete information cards and other political party registration documents. The two-hour Q&A period that followed the presentation proved valuable, providing answers to many of the participants' questions on coalition-building, security concerns, governorate versus national registrations, election monitoring, IECI staffing, women candidates, out-of-country voters, ethnic balances in the city council, and numerous other technical issues relating to the election process.
Among the participants were 25 Democracy Dialogue Activities (DDA) facilitators. DDA facilitators work through USAID's Local Governance Program to reinforce civic participation by developing the democratic "vocabulary" of Iraq's citizens. The DDA facilitators who attended the Kirkuk conference returned to their home communities where they will provide local residents with additional democracy education sessions.
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