Author: Assistant Prof. Ali Murad Al-Nasrawi
Publisher: Crisis management department
Translated by: Lecturer Hussain Bassim
March 9, 2023
One of the most crucial tenets of democracy is the peaceful transfer of power. This transfer is predicated on numerous foundations, chief among them being elections, the most popular means of securing this transfer. There is also the issue of legitimacy, as the aim of rulers is to ensure the legitimacy of representation, which is defined by (Max Weber) as The ability of the political authority to gain acceptance and be seen as representing the interests of people, as it takes into account people’s attitudes toward the political system as well as the laws, policies, and institutions of the government, enabling the political system to have a high level of legitimacy. Because it is connected to the values, beliefs, and principles represented by the system, which shouldn’t be at odds with the values and beliefs held by the citizens, when citizens perceive that the government is wrong in what it does, the political authority can be at a low degree of legitimacy. Due to the fact that most nations in the world conduct elections—including some autocratic regimes—but they are devoid of meaningful debate, elections must become legitimate in order to avoid being merely formal. To achieve this, conditions must be met for elections to be successful. We are talking about fraud and intimidation when it comes to the re-election of the same names.
As a result, when elections are viewed as a way for one party to win at the expense of another and the issue is related to election law, political parties, political pluralism, freedom of opinion, and the like, the situation becomes more serious in democratic systems or those that are in the process of transformation. Whenever there is freedom of participation and freedom of choice, a higher percentage of legitimacy is attained. And in view of the democratic transition that occurred in Iraq after 2003, several electoral processes were held there amidst unequal participation rates, variations in electoral laws, possibly for each election cycle, and a lack of stability. Most political parties attempt to alter the electoral law in a way that advances his interests and ensures his continued participation. This results from a dearth of trust between political parties and their supporter bases. Consequently, the voter lacks the ability to make the best choice. This can happen with a closed list, an open list, a single-circuit spiral, or multiple circles. Changes to electoral laws, such as those affecting the electoral denominator and others, result in a loss of electoral consciousness and stability, which is reflected in the results of the electoral process. This chaos and trouble forming governments are avoided as a result. Before they were settled, some of them went on for an entire year.
There are many factors at play here, with the exception that the novelty of the experience, the nature of the change that occurred, outside influences, and the import of other experiences that succeeded in other countries because they suited the environment and society did not always succeed in Iraq because it is diverse in all respects and has not experienced stability for a very long time. The best thing to do in this situation is to take into account the structure, nature, and environment of Iraqi society and to find an electoral law that generates correct outcomes because the situation cannot withstand further deterioration. With all these wars and dictatorships, change happened as a result of an external factor and the war machine. A fair electoral system guarantees outcomes, justice, and democratic participation. That helps to correct the problem, which is good. Returning to laws whose lack of seriousness was proven led to reactions and rallies that were out of character for the scene, which could push Iraq back into a cycle of protests and incite some powerful political forces with the power to influence public opinion. A fair electoral rule is an answer because it achieves. In terms of experience, environment, and internal factors, the scenario in Iraq is suitable for a significant amount of societal satisfaction.
