Iraq’s volatile pre-election politics

Abstract

Iraq is entering a political season ahead of parliamentary elections scheduled to take place in the autumn of 2021. The country finds itself in a markedly more volatile position compared to the months preceding its last elections in 2018, with a weak government struggling to address rising political tensions, long-standing economic problems and deteriorating public security, all while receiving less support from the international community and from the US-led coalition forces still stationed there.