Iraqis head to polls Saturday

Iraqis go to the polls tomorrow, in an election where some 14,000 people are competing for provincial 440 seats. Violence has already marked the run-up to these elections, which marks the first time Iraqi voters can pick specific individuals on a ballot since the U.S. invasion in 2003. Three Sunni Arab candidates running for provincial council seats were assassinated this week, bringing the death toll of Sunni candidates to four. Some Iraqis say the murders are an effort to intimidate people before Election Day. Sunni Arabs boycotted provincial elections in 2005 – and Shiites and Kurds ended up with disproportionate control, even in areas with larger Sunni populations. Raed Jarrar is an Iraqi blogger and consultant for the American Friends Service Committee, he spoke to KPFA's Mitch Jeserich about what might change in Iraq's political landscape this time.

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