Sudani assembles patchwork coalition in bid for second term
Tuesday’s announcement of Prime Minister Sudani’s new electoral coalition, the Construction and Development Alliance, marks a pivotal moment in Iraq’s pre-election landscape. But the alliance offers little ideological or even policy-oriented coherence.
Rather than a coalition built on a shared vision or political identity that distinguishes it from its competitors, the Construction and Development Alliance resembles a transactional vehicle aimed at electoral arithmetic: a collection of disparate figures and micro-parties united by little more than political opportunism and proximity to state resources.
The coalition brings together staunch secularists with Iran-aligned Islamists and tribal elders. Below is an overview of the seven entities that have joined forces: