Iraqi Elections

See Patrick Cockburn's analysis of the Iraqi provincial elections. He says, as others have based on preliminary reports, that secular and nationalist parties should be the winners in this election. In particular, Prime Minister Maliki's Dawa party is expected to make big gains, strengthening his rule. On the other hand, ISCI is expected to have lost a good part of its power.
Cockburn writes that many Iraqis blame the religious parties for fostering the civil war that raged in Iraq in 2005-07.
Iyad Allawi, the US pick who had not done so well in 2005, is said to have fared much better this time (he's a nationalist).