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UN assesses nearly 2,000 nominations for Iraqi electoral commission

UN assesses nearly 2,000 nominations for Iraqi electoral commission

Nearly 2,000 people, 6 per cent of them women, have been nominated for top posts with the Independent Electoral Commission of Iraq, which will guide United Nations-assisted general elections set for next January.

Nearly 2,000 people, 6 per cent of them women, have been nominated for top posts with the Independent Electoral Commission of Iraq, which will guide United Nations-assisted general elections set for next January.

The UN electoral assistance team in Iraq said today the submission process conducted from 2 to 15 May resulted in 1,878 nominations being received. Of that total, 266 (14 per cent) were received via e-mail and 111 (6 per cent) were female nominees.

Nominations came in from all 18 governorates, although five could not physically receive them because of security reasons, and the 17-page Arabic or Kurdish submissions could be downloaded and sent in by post and e-mail, it said.

The UN was processing the submissions at a secure location to reduce the number to 20 nominees for seven posts of Commissioner and five nominees for one Chief Electoral Officer. The nominees would be interviewed by a UN panel of international electoral experts to reduce the list further to a maximum of 15 for Commissioner and three for Chief Electoral Officer.

The Iraqi Governing Council would rank the nominees and the United States administrator of the Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA), L. Paul Bremer, would appoint the top nominees by 31 May.