Iraq’s election recount to begin Tuesday

BAGHDAD – Iraq’s national elections commission says a hand recount of the vote from last May’s parliamentary elections will start on Tuesday.

Leith Jaber Hamza, spokesman for the Independent High Electoral Commission, said Saturday the recount would be monitored by the United Nations, as well as foreign diplomats and local party officials.

The May elections were marred by allegations of fraud after the elections commission introduced electronic voting machines to tabulate the results speedily.

The Supreme Court approved a partial recount of the paper ballots earlier this month. No deadline was set for its completion.

The initial results gave a bloc organized by the populist Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr the largest share of the vote. Al-Sadr urged his supporters to respect the decision to hold a recount.