Chatham House Middle East and North Africa
@chmenap.bsky.social
The Middle East and North Africa Programme @chathamhouse.bsky.social | A world-leading centre for analysis, policy research and debate on the MENA region.
🔗 kalam.chathamhouse.org
🔗 kalam.chathamhouse.org
2025 marks 20 years since Iraq’s first post-2003 elections — a moment that once inspired hope for democracy and reform.
In this @chathamhouse.org explainer, @renadmansour.bsky.social examines what it will take to rebuild trust in Iraq’s political system.
🔗 www.chathamhouse.org/2025/10/iraq...
In this @chathamhouse.org explainer, @renadmansour.bsky.social examines what it will take to rebuild trust in Iraq’s political system.
🔗 www.chathamhouse.org/2025/10/iraq...
Iraq elections 2025: How votes are won and what the results could mean for Iraq’s fragile stability
Iraq goes to the polls on 11 November. But with few Iraqis expected to actually vote, the real contest lies in how power will be divided among the elites who dominate the system.
www.chathamhouse.org
November 10, 2025 at 5:45 PM
2025 marks 20 years since Iraq’s first post-2003 elections — a moment that once inspired hope for democracy and reform.
In this @chathamhouse.org explainer, @renadmansour.bsky.social examines what it will take to rebuild trust in Iraq’s political system.
🔗 www.chathamhouse.org/2025/10/iraq...
In this @chathamhouse.org explainer, @renadmansour.bsky.social examines what it will take to rebuild trust in Iraq’s political system.
🔗 www.chathamhouse.org/2025/10/iraq...
Turnout will be a decisive factor in this election. In a recent #IraqInitiative analysis, Munqith Dagher reveals that turnout could range between 25%-40%. Low participation is not an abstract concern but an issue that will shape the distribution of power.
kalam.chathamhouse.org/articles/vot...
kalam.chathamhouse.org/articles/vot...
Voter turnout will define Iraq’s 2025 election - Kalam
When Iraqis head to the polls on 11 November 2025, the central issue will not be which parties win seats but whether enough people turn out to vote. Turnout
kalam.chathamhouse.org
November 10, 2025 at 5:45 PM
Turnout will be a decisive factor in this election. In a recent #IraqInitiative analysis, Munqith Dagher reveals that turnout could range between 25%-40%. Low participation is not an abstract concern but an issue that will shape the distribution of power.
kalam.chathamhouse.org/articles/vot...
kalam.chathamhouse.org/articles/vot...
The elections aren’t just domestic – they’re a regional pivot. As Baghdad balances ties with the US, Iran and the Gulf, the vote could reshape its role in the region and affect the country’s stability.
Read @renadmansour's analysis for the @TheNational. www.thenationalnews.com/opinion/comm...
Read @renadmansour's analysis for the @TheNational. www.thenationalnews.com/opinion/comm...
Iraq’s elections come at a crucial moment for the region – and not for the first time | The National
The stand-off between Israel and Iran is not over, and the prospect of a less predictable White House has only heightened anxiety in Iraq
www.thenationalnews.com
November 10, 2025 at 5:45 PM
The elections aren’t just domestic – they’re a regional pivot. As Baghdad balances ties with the US, Iran and the Gulf, the vote could reshape its role in the region and affect the country’s stability.
Read @renadmansour's analysis for the @TheNational. www.thenationalnews.com/opinion/comm...
Read @renadmansour's analysis for the @TheNational. www.thenationalnews.com/opinion/comm...
A key factor in this election is the political and economic influence of armed groups, which have managed to retain their power as the state has yet to demonstrate full capacity or will to enforce broad disarmament, says @haydersh.bsky.social in @wsj.com.
www.wsj.com/world/middle...
www.wsj.com/world/middle...
Iraq’s Leader Seeks an Improbable Prize: Independence From the U.S. and Iran
Mohammed Shia al-Sudani is running for re-election Tuesday after managing to keep his country out of the region’s recent conflicts.
www.wsj.com
November 10, 2025 at 5:45 PM
A key factor in this election is the political and economic influence of armed groups, which have managed to retain their power as the state has yet to demonstrate full capacity or will to enforce broad disarmament, says @haydersh.bsky.social in @wsj.com.
www.wsj.com/world/middle...
www.wsj.com/world/middle...
As @wrodgers2.bsky.social explains, the Kurdistan Region of Iraq is no different - people struggle with much of the same issues of corruption, political patronage and disillusionment. Read his analysis: inkstickmedia.com/in-iraqi-kur...
In Iraqi Kurdistan, the Deep-Seated Politics of Hopelessness
Political patronage, corruption, and economic pressures have left Iraqi Kurds with little optimism for the region's future.
inkstickmedia.com
November 10, 2025 at 5:45 PM
As @wrodgers2.bsky.social explains, the Kurdistan Region of Iraq is no different - people struggle with much of the same issues of corruption, political patronage and disillusionment. Read his analysis: inkstickmedia.com/in-iraqi-kur...
In this @amwajmedia.bsky.social, @haydersh.bsky.social explains how 4 years after Tishreen-linked MPs entered parliament, reform efforts have stalled. Structural and organisational barriers kept them sidelined, while entrenched elites continue to control the system.
amwaj.media/en/article/w...
amwaj.media/en/article/w...
Deep Dive: Iraq’s civic parties face uphill battle in upcoming elections
Once poised to dominate Iraq’s political future, figures and parties emerging from the October (Tishreen) 2019 protest movement now face widespread public apathy. These declining fortunes follow a pr...
amwaj.media
November 10, 2025 at 5:45 PM
In this @amwajmedia.bsky.social, @haydersh.bsky.social explains how 4 years after Tishreen-linked MPs entered parliament, reform efforts have stalled. Structural and organisational barriers kept them sidelined, while entrenched elites continue to control the system.
amwaj.media/en/article/w...
amwaj.media/en/article/w...
Iraq’s election campaigns promise services, instead of programmes tied to the two core functions of parliament: legislation and oversight.
Lina Musawi explains how ruling elites have built a system that weakens parliament and entrenches impunity.
kalam.chathamhouse.org/articles/how...
Lina Musawi explains how ruling elites have built a system that weakens parliament and entrenches impunity.
kalam.chathamhouse.org/articles/how...
How ‘service-broker MPs’ undermine Iraq’s parliament and what needs to be done - Kalam
As each election season approaches, Iraq’s walls and billboards fill with candidates’ photos and slogans. Social media overflows with images of campaign gifts
kalam.chathamhouse.org
November 10, 2025 at 5:45 PM
Iraq’s election campaigns promise services, instead of programmes tied to the two core functions of parliament: legislation and oversight.
Lina Musawi explains how ruling elites have built a system that weakens parliament and entrenches impunity.
kalam.chathamhouse.org/articles/how...
Lina Musawi explains how ruling elites have built a system that weakens parliament and entrenches impunity.
kalam.chathamhouse.org/articles/how...
Iraq’s 2015 Political Parties Law was designed to regulate campaign financing & party ties to armed groups — but it’s never been enforced.
In The New Arab, @haydersh.bsky.social explains how this leaves Iraq’s democracy suspended between legality & impunity.
www.newarab.com/analysis/ove...
In The New Arab, @haydersh.bsky.social explains how this leaves Iraq’s democracy suspended between legality & impunity.
www.newarab.com/analysis/ove...
Oversight is optional: How Iraqi democracy is being hollowed out
The posters are new, the promises familiar, but the political parties law of 2015 sits idle, allowing money and militias to define who competes, and wins
www.newarab.com
November 10, 2025 at 5:45 PM
Iraq’s 2015 Political Parties Law was designed to regulate campaign financing & party ties to armed groups — but it’s never been enforced.
In The New Arab, @haydersh.bsky.social explains how this leaves Iraq’s democracy suspended between legality & impunity.
www.newarab.com/analysis/ove...
In The New Arab, @haydersh.bsky.social explains how this leaves Iraq’s democracy suspended between legality & impunity.
www.newarab.com/analysis/ove...
While the 2025 election is unlikely to bring reform and accountability, it remains deeply contested as it presents an opportunity for deeply entrenched party elites to recalibrate power among themselves. @renadmansour.bsky.social explains why:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=H4Bo...
www.youtube.com/watch?v=H4Bo...
Iraq is having elections, but will Iraqis actually vote?
YouTube video by Chatham House
www.youtube.com
November 10, 2025 at 5:45 PM
While the 2025 election is unlikely to bring reform and accountability, it remains deeply contested as it presents an opportunity for deeply entrenched party elites to recalibrate power among themselves. @renadmansour.bsky.social explains why:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=H4Bo...
www.youtube.com/watch?v=H4Bo...