Amman, February 09: At least 10 polling stations are to open in Jordan for Iraqi expatriates to take part in their country’s March 7 election, as part of worldwide out-of-country voting, Iraq’s ambassador said on Tuesday.
“We have agreed with Jordan to open from 10 to 15 voting centres in Amman and Irbid and other cities, and an office for the Independent High Electoral Commission (IHEC) has been opened to supervise the voting,” Saad Hayyani said.
“The voting is scheduled to take place on March 5 and 6. Eligible voters are estimated at between 100,000 and 200,000,” he told AFP, with the ballot abroad taking place just ahead of voting inside Iraq as was the case in 2005.
Hayyani said Jordanian figures indicated between 400,000 and 450,000 Iraqis living in the kingdom, “but we think they are around 300,000.”
King Abdullah II said last month that Jordan estimates the number of Iraqi expatriates at 500,000.
According to the United Nations, around 1.5 million Iraqis have sought refuge in Syria and about half a million in Jordan since the 2003 US-led invasion of Iraq.
Next month’s poll will be Iraq’s second general election since the US-led ouster of dictator Saddam Hussein in 2003.
US Vice President Joe Biden said during a visit to Baghdad last month that facilities would also be provided to allow Iraqis now living in the United States to cast ballots.
The election is seen as key to consolidating Iraq’s fledgling democracy and ensuring a smooth exit of US combat troops by August ahead of a complete American military withdrawal by the end of 2011.
IHEC’s website says out-of-country voting stations are also being set up in Australia, Austria, Canada, Egypt, Germany, Holland, Iran, Lebanon, Sweden, Syria, Turkey and the United Arab Emirates.
It still hopes to secure the agreement of British and Danish authorities.
–Agencies