page_title: December 2005 Iraqi parliamentary election
section_title: Impact of election
hierarchical_section_title: December 2005 Iraqi parliamentary election / Impact of election
caption_attribution_description: English: Voting in Iraq, 15 December 2005
context_page_description: Following the ratification of the Constitution of Iraq on 15 October 2005, a general election was held on 15 December to elect a permanent 275-member Iraqi Council of Representatives.
  The elections took place under a list system, whereby voters chose from a list of parties and coalitions. 230 seats were apportioned among Iraq's 18 governorates based on the number of registered voters in each as of the January 2005 elections, including 59 seats for Baghdad Governorate. The seats within each governorate were allocated to lists through a system of Proportional Representation. An additional 45 "compensatory" seats were allocated to those parties whose percentage of the national vote total exceeds the percentage of the 275 total seats that they have been allocated. Women were required to occupy 25% of the 275 seats.
  The change in the voting system would give more weight to Arab Sunni voters, who make up most of the voters in several provinces. It was expected that these provinces would thus return mostly Sunni Arab representatives, after most Sunnis boycotted the last election.
  Turnout was high.
context_section_description: The election is expected to have a significant impact on the politics of Iraq. Most significant developments are expected to be:
caption: Iraqis wait in line to vote
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