The Iraqi National Alliance, a coalition of mostly Shiite religious parties, is leading in early results from the southern Iraqi city of Amara, an Iraqi electoral official said Friday.
Amal al-Birqadar, of Iraq's Independent High Electoral Commission, told the German Press Agency dpa that the Iraqi National Alliance, led by the Shiite Supreme Islamic Council of Iraq (SICI), was leading in the city, the administrative capital of Maysan province, with 30 per cent of the votes counted.
The Iraqi National Alliance was running a close second in two other southern provinces, Najaf and Babil, just behind Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki's State of Law coalition, according to early results announced Thursday.
Al-Birqadar said more early results were expected to be announced on Friday as elections workers continued the process of counting and sorting the votes.