September 6, 2022

A weekly review of news and analysis of elections in the greater Middle East and North Africa, usually posted on Tuesdays and occasionally updated throughout the week.

The Shatt Al-Arab, a river formed by the confluence of the Tigris and Euphrates, near Basra, Iraq. Photo credit: Wikimedia/Aziz1005 (public domain)

Upcoming Middle East Elections

Kuwait Snap Parliamentary Elections: September 29, 2022

Fiona MacDonald, Bloomberg (September 2, 2022): Kuwait Overhauls State Boards After Government Vows Shake Up

Israel Snap Parliamentary Elections, Take 5: November 1, 2022

Eliav Breuer, Jerusalem Post (September 5, 2022): Israel elections: Lapid, Netanyahu’s boxing match officially begins – analysis

Ben Samuels, Haaretz (September 5, 2022): What Israel’s Mossad Chief Hopes to Achieve in His Iran-focused Visit to Washington

Simon Davies and Joshua Hantman, Times of Israel (September 4, 2022): Will an ‘election surprise’ party break the political deadlock? Protest party Fiery Youth hopes to replicate the Pensioners’ longshot success of 2006. But it could also meet the same fate as 2021’s quickly forgotten Shulmanim

Ariel Schmidberg, I24 News (September 1, 2022): Analysis: Why Israel’s election is so subdued

Tunisia Early Legislative Elections: December 17, 2022 (following a July 25, 2022 constitutional referendum)

Arab Reform Initiative (September 1, 2022): Tunisia’s Parliament: A Series of Post-Revolution Frustrations

Iraq Snap Parliamentary Elections: TBD, following chaos in the wake of October 2021 elections

Sadr’s supporters are numerous, but the firebrand cleric has no obvious pathway to form a government nearly one year after national elections. #IntelBrief #Iraqhttps://t.co/Kcq6eU3auT

— The Soufan Center (@TheSoufanCenter) September 6, 2022

AFP (September 5, 2022): Iraq powers agree to work towards snap elections following unrest

Jonathan Guyer, Vox (September 1, 2022): Why Iraq could be approaching another civil war, explained by an expert: This isn’t the first time Muqtada al-Sadr has said he’s leaving politics. Here’s what it means for Iraq.

Abbas Al Lawati and Adam Pourahmadi, CNN, (August 31, 2022): What 24 hours of chaos in Iraq says about who controls the country

Reuters (August 31, 2022): Factbox: Iraq’s political turmoil and its energy sector

Over ten months of political deadlock in Iraq led Shiite cleric and winner of the country’s 2021 elections, Muqtada al-Sadr, to announce his “definitive retirement” from politics and the closure of all affiliated institutions.https://t.co/kQjmSEY1CG

— Dilan Sirwan (@DeelanSirwan) August 29, 2022

Turkey Presidential and Legislative Elections: By June 18, 2023

Onur Ant, Bloomberg (September 6, 2022): Turkey Plans New Loan Stimulus to Spur Growth Before Vote

Turkey’s nationalist IYI Party, which is one of the six parties that are expected by many to topple Erdogan’s government in 2023 elections, refuses any alliances with the pro-Kurdish HDP.

However, pundits believe that the six parties cannot beat Erdogan without HDP support. pic.twitter.com/ZNEJ7sSgNW

— Karwan Faidhi Dri (@KarwanFaidhiDri) September 6, 2022

Andrew Wilks, AP (September 6, 2022): Tension rises as Turkey, Greece voice festering grievances

Bne IntelliNews (September 1, 2022): Erdogan regime protests ‘fake news’ after Reuters probes Turkey’s muzzled media

Jonathan Spicer, Reuters (August 31, 2022): Special Report: Insiders reveal how Erdogan tamed Turkey’s newsrooms

Pakistan General Elections: By October 12, 2023 (snap elections possible)

Kamran Haider, Bloomberg (September 5, 2022): Pakistan Military Lashes Out at Imran Khan, Raising Tensions

Ayaz Gul, Voice of America (September 5, 2022): Pakistan Ex-PM’s Comments Over Appointment of Army Chief Fuel Tensions

Benjamin Parkin and Farhan Bokhari, Financial Times (September 4, 2022): Man of the people or agent of chaos? Imran Khan divides Pakistan

Reuters (September 1, 2022): Pakistan court extends Imran Khan’s bail on terrorism charges

Arif Rafiq, Foreign Policy (August 31, 2022): Pakistan’s Ghosts Loom Over Imran Khan

Middle East Elections Coming Up in 2022 and 2023

Kuwait Snap Parliamentary Elections: September 29, 2022

Libya Presidential and Parliamentary Elections: Overdue

Iraqi Kurdistan Regional Parliamentary Elections: October 1, 2022 (delays possible)

Israel Snap Parliamentary Elections: November 1, 2022

Bahrain Parliamentary Elections: November 2022 (due)

Tunisia Early Legislative Elections: December 17, 2022

Turkey Presidential and Legislative Elections: By June 18, 2023

Pakistan General Elections: By October 12, 2023

Israel Local Elections: October 2023

Oman Consultative Assembly Elections: October 2023

United Arab Emirates Federal National Council Elections: October 2023 (indirect elections, advisory body with limited powers)

Egypt Local Elections: Due and discussed, but not scheduled

Oman Local Elections: Due, but postponed due to COVID-19

Palestinian Authority Presidential and Legislative Elections: Long overdue, postponed yet again, no date set

21votes does not necessarily agree with all of the opinions expressed in the linked articles; rather, our goal is to curate a wide range of voices. Furthermore, none of the individuals or organizations referenced have reviewed 21votes’ content, and their inclusion should not be taken to imply that they endorse us in any way. More on our approach here.