Political Entities & Candidates »

IHEC Regulation 5 sets forth the requirements for political entities to register in elections. The head of the entity must sign a Code of Conduct prepared by IHEC regulating its conduct during the electoral period. A political entity can be an individual candidate, a political party or a coalition of parties.

A political entity must submit a list of no less than (500) eligible voters that support the entity and provide internal documents regulating its management structures and practices. It must pay a filing fee of 25 million Iraqi Dinars (for entities composed of more than one person) or 5 million ID for an entity made up of one person.

A political entity must not select a name that is similar to an already registered entity, nor should the name chosen be likely to incite violence or hatred. Any slogans or political symbolism used by the entity should not be likely to incite violence or hatred. Political entities should not have any links with armed forces, militias or military units – including direct or indirect funding links.

An accredited entity can choose the constituency or constituencies in which it wishes to run. It can join a coalition with another accredited entity but can only submit one candidate list within that coalition for a given election and loses the right to submit another independent candidate list for that same election. A political entity can join more than one coalition but not in the same governorate election and once the entity has submitted a joint coalition candidate list it cannot withdraw from the coalition.

IHEC will check the candidates’ eligibility according to the electoral law and IHEC regulations and reserves the right to refuse any candidate who is not qualified.

• IHEC Regulation 4 (2008) – Electoral Campaigns
• IHEC Regulation 5 (2008) - Certification of Political Entities
• Code of Conduct for Political Entities