In press conference in Najaf, Sadrists “Salah Al-Ubaidi” announced the results of the referendum and it came as the following:
Al-Ja’afari 24%, Ja’afar Al-Sadr 23%, Kusai Al-Suhail 17%, Al-Maliki 10%, Allawi 9%, Chalabi 3%, Adil Abd Al-Mahdi 2%, Al-Isawi 1%, Others 5%.
The name of Jaafar Al-Sadr is forced on the list of candidates, despite that Jaafar (Muqtada Al-Sadr’s cousin) refused to be listed among the candidates.
They know very well that Ja’afari will be rejected by many neighboring countries (Syria and “new relation with Saudi Arabia), The Sadrists will present their candidate to withdraw him later in a compromise for ministerial seats in the coming government, or to exchange him with an independent and neutral person such as Ja’afar Al-Sadr accepted by all sides to solve the crisis.
Still unknown if these results will accelerate in the birth of the government through regional consensus, or it will be seen as a delay factor, since the negotiations will take longer.
Another important thing, is other INA’s Blocs position from the referendum. After Ammar Al-Hakim’s poor results in the election, many expected that this is the end of Al-Hakim’s political future. He emerged in the last weeks as the voice of reason and the balance point between all the coalitions.
Hours after his meeting with Maliki, Al-Hakim shocked his supporters when he rejected the “Baathists” charge on Al-Iraqiya, with this maneuver, Ammar Al-Hakim managed to hijack the Shiite-leadership from Maliki and Muqtada Al-Sadr.
Also, Ammar Al-Hakim cleverly managed to impose the “round-table” idea (originally it is the Sadrists idea, later they changed to the referendum) to encircle Al-Sadr’s referendum.