Ali Zuweid's Political Programme
Proposed legislation · State, Constitution, Justice, Rights and Governance
Political Parties, Political Finance and Electoral Campaigns Bill
A repeal-and-replacement bill reorganising the formation, governance and public and private financing of political parties, and consolidating campaign finance, expenditure, political advertising, disclosure, auditing and penalties within a framework that protects pluralism and prevents anonymous or foreign funding and the use of state resources.
Executive Summary
The Bill proceeds from the fact that Political Parties Law No. (36) of 2015 remains the basis for federal party registration. The Commission's Department of Political Party and Organisation Affairs continues to apply it and maintain an extensive party register. However, the existing Law combines high formation thresholds, a substantial registration fee, financial oversight limited in its timing and technical capabilities, and campaign finance rules dispersed across the Political Parties Law, election law and Commission regulations. Moreover, in Decision 3/Federal/Media/2016, the Federal Supreme Court invalidated provisions including the university degree requirement for founders, the blanket liability of a party newspaper's editor-in-chief, and the formula distributing eighty per cent of the subsidy according to parliamentary seats. Comprehensive replacement is therefore more coherent than piecemeal amendments.
The Bill bases registration on objective conditions and clear deadlines, reduces the formation requirement to five hundred founders without a degree requirement or compulsory geographical distribution, and replaces the high fee with a service charge capped at administrative cost. It retains the Party Affairs Department within the Commission instead of establishing a new authority, transfers administrative appeals to the administrative judiciary, and confirms that a party may be dissolved only by judicial judgment on serious, specified grounds, never by administrative decision.
For funding, it restricts direct donations to Iraqi natural persons, with ceilings linked to the minimum wage. It prohibits foreign and anonymous funding, funding by legal persons and the use of state resources, and subjects large donations to banking channels and public disclosure. Iraqis residing abroad may donate their own money through a traceable channel without opening the door to funding by foreign governments or organisations. Financial oversight is also linked to the Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing Law without turning the Commission into a parallel financial agency.
The Bill redesigns public funding to avoid the constitutional defect in the former formula: fifty per cent is shared equally among qualifying parties, thirty per cent according to votes rather than seats, and twenty per cent to match small donations. It thereby combines a basic level of equal opportunity, recognition of actual popular support and encouragement of grassroots funding rather than dependence on a large donor.
For electoral campaigns, it establishes separate accounts, treasurers, periodic reports and final reports, and requires the Commission to set spending ceilings through a published methodology that considers voter numbers, inflation and media costs, subject to an absolute cap. It regulates independent expenditure, third parties, digital advertising and misleading synthetic content, prohibits the purchase of fake-account networks, the use of state resources and vote buying, and preserves freedom of political expression and peaceful criticism.
The core reform separates political opinion, which the state should not police, from political money, which must be traceable. Penalties therefore follow graduated, proportionate rules with a right to rectify errors. Dissolution and broad suspension require judicial judgment. Deliberate foreign funding, concealment of donors, misuse of public funds and armed formations are criminalised, but unintentional formal accounting errors do not attract detention.
Constitutional and legal context
The Iraqi Constitution establishes freedom of political association within a balanced framework of rights and restrictions. Article (39) guarantees freedom to establish and join associations and political parties, to be regulated by law, and prohibits compelling anyone to join or remain a member. This freedom is linked to equality and equal opportunity under Articles (14) and (16), political rights under Article (20), and freedoms of expression, the press and assembly under Article (38). Conversely, Article (7) prohibits entities that adopt or justify racism, terrorism, takfir or sectarian cleansing, and the Saddam-era Ba'ath Party. Article (9) prohibits militias outside the armed forces and establishes the military institution's neutrality in partisan politics.
Political Parties Law No. (36) of 2015 was published in Issue 4383 of the Iraqi Official Gazette. It established the Party Affairs Department within the Commission, made formation subject to conditions including a list of at least two thousand founding members, fees and verification procedures, and regulated funding sources, accounts, subsidies and penalties. The Ministry of Justice still lists it among the laws in force published in 2026, and the Commission continues to operate the Department and public party register under it.
However, on 9 August 2016, in Case 3/Federal/Media/2016, the Federal Supreme Court declared specific provisions unconstitutional, including paragraph (Sixth) of Article (9), requiring a university degree; paragraph (Second) of Article (22), insofar as it imposed blanket criminal liability on the editor-in-chief; and paragraph (Second) of Article (44), allocating eighty per cent of the subsidy to parties represented in the Council of Representatives according to their seats. These were inconsistent with constitutional principles including equality, equal opportunity and the personal nature of punishment. A later Decision, No. 67/Federal/2016, considered other challenges and treated some as legislative choices or matters already decided.
For the 2025 Council of Representatives elections, the Commission issued Electoral Campaigns Regulation No. (4) of 2025, the Campaign Guide, penal provisions, and rules on complaints, agents and media. This confirms that practical campaign regulation is dispersed across several laws and regulations. The Bill addresses this fragmentation through comprehensive political finance legislation, while leaving technical matters of voting, results and electoral appeals to the election law.
Legislative Gaps and Reasons for Reform
| Area | Problem | Proposed remedy |
|---|---|---|
| Formation | A high founder threshold, substantial fees and paper-based procedures that may become a barrier to political association. | Five hundred founders, direct government data exchange, a limited administrative fee and a reasoned decision within a defined period. |
| Effects of Federal Supreme Court Judgments | Judicially invalidated provisions remain within the Law's original structure, including the degree requirement and seat-based subsidy formula. | Replacement legislation removing invalidated provisions and establishing rules consistent with equality and the personal nature of punishment. |
| Private Funding | Weak ceilings, traceability and differentiation between the true donor and an intermediary, together with corporate and external funding risks. | Donations only from Iraqi natural persons, adjustable ceilings, bank accounts, and prohibitions on anonymous, foreign and legal-person funding. |
| Public Funding | The previous seat-based formula was invalidated because of its unfair effects on emerging parties. | A combination of a basic equal share, vote share and small-donation matching. |
| Campaigns | Spending, advertising and penalty rules dispersed across laws, regulations and periodically issued instructions. | A permanent statutory chapter covering spending ceilings, electoral accounts, third parties, digital advertising and state resources. |
| Technology | Digital advertising, targeting, synthetic content and fake networks are inadequately covered by the original Law. | Identification of advertisement funders, an advertising library, labelling of realistic synthetic content and a prohibition on concealing the source of automated campaigning. |
| Penalties | The risk of broad penalties that fail to distinguish accounting errors from crimes, or the individual from the party. | Graduation and proportionality, a right to rectify errors, dissolution only by judicial decision, and personal criminal liability. |
Proposed legislative policy
The Bill adopts five interconnected legislative choices. The first is facilitating entry into politics without dispensing with seriousness: founder and fee thresholds are lowered, while verifiable documents, a programme, internal rules and financial rules remain required. The second is neutrality towards lawful ideas: the Commission does not judge the substance of a party's economic, social or foreign policy, but verifies legality, democracy and peaceful conduct.
The third is the risk-based financial transparency. Small donations retain public privacy while remaining known to the regulator; larger amounts move through the banking system, and donor identities are published above a clear threshold. Direct corporate funding is prohibited rather than attempting to trace chains of legal persons and contracts that may be used to buy influence, while non-partisan civic activity and independent media expression remain permitted.
The fourth is balanced public funding. Complete equality among hundreds of parties regardless of activity may waste money, while heavy reliance on seats entrenches established forces. Funding is therefore divided between an equal share for serious parties, a vote-related share and a small-donation matching share, connecting public money to both pluralism and popular support.
The fifth is keeping party regulation separate from security and judicial functions. No new political court or financial investigation agency is established within the Commission. Administrative disputes go to the administrative judiciary, crimes to the criminal judiciary, suspicious transactions to the Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing Office, and electoral appeals to the competent judicial panel under the election law.
Text of the bill
In the name of the people
Pursuant to the enactment of the Council of Representatives under paragraph (First) of Article (61) and paragraph (Third) of Article (73) of the Constitution of the Republic of Iraq of 2005, the following Law is promulgated:
Political Parties, Political Finance and Electoral Campaigns Law
Chapter One — Application, Definitions and General Principles
Article (1) — Scope of Application
This Law applies to federally registered political parties and organisations, political finance and electoral campaigns for federal elections and referendums, and any person or entity undertaking organised political expenditure under its provisions.
Article (2) — Federal and Regional Scope
This Law does not prejudice the powers of regions to regulate parties whose activities and elections are confined to the region. Any party wishing to participate in federal elections shall comply with its federal recognition, funding and disclosure requirements, without being required to reconstitute itself if validly registered in the region.
Article (3) — Definitions
The following terms have the meanings set out below: Commission: the Independent High Electoral Commission; Department: the Commission's Department of Political Party and Organisation Affairs; Party: a voluntary organisation of citizens based on a political programme and seeking, by democratic and peaceful means, to participate in public affairs or the transfer of power; Donation: any money, benefit or service provided without consideration or for less than market value; Political expenditure: any expenditure primarily intended to support or oppose a party or candidate or influence an electoral result; Independent expenditure: political expenditure undertaken without direct or indirect coordination with a party or candidate; Electoral account: a bank account dedicated to the campaign; Minimum wage: the general monthly minimum wage determined under the legislation in force.
Article (4) — Objectives
This Law aims to guarantee political pluralism and freedom to establish, join and leave parties, prevent monopolisation of political life, ensure funding transparency, curb influence buying and illicit money, and protect equal opportunity and the integrity of electoral campaigns.
Article (5) — Freedom to Establish Parties
Iraqi men and women have the right freely to establish, join, decline to join or leave political parties. This right may be restricted only by a statutory provision that is necessary and proportionate to the Constitution and the protection of the democratic order and the rights of others.
Article (6) — Prohibition of Coercion and Discrimination
Compelling anyone to join or remain in a party or donate to it is prohibited. No one may be deprived of a right, public service or employment opportunity because of lawful party membership or non-membership.
Article (7) — Democratic and Peaceful Character
A party shall conduct its activities by peaceful and democratic means and respect the Constitution, the rule of law, the peaceful transfer of power and human rights. It may not use violence or threats of violence as a means of political action.
Article (8) — No Monopoly of Representation
No party may claim exclusive representation of a component, sect, nationality or region, or prevent citizens from establishing competing political organisations. Its name or programme shall confer no legal privilege to represent a social group.
Article (9) — Organisational Independence
A party shall be independent in determining its programme and internal rules and selecting its leaders and candidates, subject to internal democracy, transparency and the rights granted to its members under this Law.
Article (10) — Name and Emblem
A party shall have a full name, an abbreviated name and a distinctive emblem that neither matches nor creates substantial confusion with a registered party. These may not incite hatred or violence or imply official status as the state, the armed forces or a constitutional body.
Article (11) — Legal Personality
A party shall acquire legal personality on the date of its registration decision and may own property, contract and litigate within its purposes. Its funds or profits may not be distributed to members or leaders.
Chapter Two — Party Affairs Department and Political Register
Article (12) — Competent Authority
The Commission's Department of Political Party and Organisation Affairs shall register parties and monitor their financial and organisational compliance under this Law, applying uniform professional standards under the oversight of the Board of Commissioners and the competent courts.
Article (13) — Institutional Impartiality
Department staff may not seek or receive instructions from a party, candidate or governmental body in an individual case. Registration and audit files shall be assigned automatically or under published rules preventing selective treatment and conflicts of interest.
Article (14) — Public Register
The Department shall establish a free public electronic register containing registered parties, their authorised leaders, internal rules and programmes, registration status, published annual accounts, final decisions and penalties, alliances, mergers and dissolutions.
Article (15) — Data Protection
The full membership register, members' addresses and national identification numbers shall not be published. The Department shall request only information necessary for verification and oversight. Membership data shall be processed according to necessity, security and purpose limitation principles.
Article (16) — Services and Fees
Registration and filing procedures shall be offered electronically wherever possible. No party formation application fee may exceed direct administrative cost, subject to a maximum equivalent to the monthly minimum wage at the time of application. No compulsory fee may be charged for courses or services not legally required.
Chapter Three — Formation and Registration
Article (17) — Founder Qualifications
A founder must be an Iraqi national with full legal capacity who has reached eighteen years of age and has not been finally convicted of a felony involving corruption, terrorism or intentional homicide, or an offence involving moral turpitude, unless rehabilitated under the law. A founder must not be among those prohibited from party membership under Article (48) of this Law.
Article (18) — Removal of the Educational Qualification Requirement
No particular educational qualification shall be required of a party founder, member or leader. No such condition may be introduced by regulation or instructions.
Article (19) — Founding Body
A formation application shall be submitted by a founding body of at least seven members, supported by a list of at least five hundred eligible founders. A party may declare a national, regional or local scope. No geographical distribution of founders shall be required in a manner that denies registration to parties with a lawful regional or component-based constituency.
Article (20) — Application Contents
The formation application shall include the party's name, emblem and address, internal rules, political programme, minutes of the founding body's election, a list of founders and means of verifying their identities, the names of authorised representatives, and an undertaking to open a bank account after registration.
Article (21) — Internal Rules
The internal rules shall specify membership and termination conditions; party bodies and their powers; procedures for electing and holding leaders accountable; management of funds; candidate selection; internal dispute resolution; amendment of the rules; merger and dissolution; and safeguards for members' rights.
Article (22) — Political Programme
The political programme shall be written and publicly available. It may not advocate violence, terrorism, racism, takfir, sectarian cleansing, forcible abolition of the democratic order or violation of constitutionally guaranteed fundamental rights.
Article (23) — Verification of Founders
The Department shall verify identity and eligibility through links with the competent official bodies wherever possible. Founders shall not be required to obtain records or confirmations that the state can exchange electronically, subject to confidentiality and the right to correct data.
Article (24) — Review of the Name and Programme
The Department's review shall be confined to fulfilment of the objective conditions specified in this Law. It shall not extend to assessing the programme's viability or political, economic or social orientation, provided it is lawful, democratic and peaceful.
Article (25) — Rectification of Deficiencies
If an application is incomplete, the Department shall notify the party's representative once, with a comprehensive statement of deficiencies, within ten working days of receipt. Thirty days, extendable once, shall be allowed to remedy them.
Article (26) — Decision Period
The Department shall determine a complete application by reasoned decision within forty-five working days. Expiry of that period without a decision constitutes an appealable administrative omission, not a final refusal or automatic registration.
Article (27) — Grounds for Refusal
Registration may be refused only for failure to meet an express condition of this Law, proof that the party is an armed organisation or a front for a prohibited organisation, or a programme or legal structure based on activities prohibited by a constitutional or statutory provision. Refusal shall be reasoned and specify the facts.
Article (28) — Registration Appeals
An applicant may challenge refusal or failure to act before the Administrative Court within thirty days of notification or expiry of the decision period. Its judgment may be appealed before the Supreme Administrative Court in accordance with the law.
Article (29) — Commencement of Legal Personality
The registration decision shall be published in the public register, and the party shall exercise its legal personality from the decision date. No additional political or security approval may be required once registration procedures are satisfied.
Article (30) — Notification of Changes
The party shall notify the Department within thirty days of any change in its authorised leadership, internal rules, address or bank accounts, or any merger. Its internal decisions shall not require Department approval to take effect unless the change concerns an essential registration condition.
Chapter Four — Membership and Internal Democracy
Article (31) — Membership Conditions
Any Iraqi who has reached eighteen years of age may join a party upon satisfying its lawful internal conditions. No person may belong to more than one party at a time.
Article (32) — Freedom to Withdraw
A member may withdraw by written or electronic notice, effective upon receipt by the party. Withdrawal shall not justify suspending the member's lawful civil or financial rights or withholding their documents.
Article (33) — Members' Rights
Members have the right to inspect internal rules, fundamental decisions and internal financial reports; participate in bodies permitted by the rules; stand for party office under general, published conditions; and challenge internal penalties.
Article (34) — General Congress
A party shall convene a general congress or elected representative body at least once every four years to elect its leadership or renew confidence in it and approve political and financial reports. Meetings may be in person or hybrid, with safeguards for verification, identity and secret voting where appropriate.
Article (35) — Leadership Elections
Leadership bodies shall be chosen through genuine periodic elections under the internal rules. A leadership term may be extended only in a documented emergency, for no longer than six months, with the reason and election date announced.
Article (36) — Integrity of Internal Elections
The party shall provide a clear register of those entitled to vote and stand, an impartial committee administering internal elections, a results record and an objections mechanism. Records shall be retained for at least five years.
Article (37) — Candidate Selection
The internal rules shall establish a transparent, democratic method of selecting election candidates. The fundamental rules shall be announced to the party and public a reasonable time before nominations open. List positions may not be sold, nor may a financial donation be required in return for nomination.
Article (38) — Internal Non-Discrimination
Unjustified discrimination in membership, nomination or holding party office on grounds of sex, nationality, religion, sect, opinion, disability or social origin is prohibited. Reasonable positive measures may be adopted to strengthen the participation of women, young people and persons with disabilities.
Article (39) — Party Discipline
A party penalty may be imposed only under the internal rules, after notifying the member of the violation and giving them an opportunity to respond. The penalty shall be proportionate and may be challenged before an internal body independent of the body that imposed it.
Article (40) — Expulsion from Membership
A member shall not be expelled arbitrarily. An expulsion decision shall be written and reasoned and shall not extinguish any civil or financial right outside the party relationship.
Article (41) — Membership Register
The party shall maintain an updated, secure membership register. Its data shall not be disclosed to a public or private body except under law, a judicial order or the verification purposes specified in this Law. Its use for employment-related or commercial pressure is prohibited.
Article (42) — Protection of Internal Whistleblowers
No member or party employee may be penalised for reporting, in good faith, corruption, unlawful funding, violence or forgery to the internal oversight body, the Department or a competent judicial authority.
Article (43) — Party Conflicts of Interest
The party shall adopt a written conflict-of-interest policy covering contracts with leaders, their relatives and associated companies. The relationship and consideration shall be disclosed, and the interested person shall be excluded from the contracting decision.
Article (44) — Internal Audit
Every party whose annual income exceeds fifty times the minimum wage shall establish an internal audit function independent of the treasurer. It shall submit an annual report to the leadership body and general congress.
Article (45) — Annual Organisational Report
The party shall file with the Department a concise annual report on meetings of its bodies, leadership elections, changes to its rules and aggregate, non-identifying membership numbers. The report shall be published in the public register.
Chapter Five — Political Activity, Independence and Prohibition of Violence
Article (46) — Parties' Political Rights
A party may participate in elections and referendums, hold peaceful meetings and assemblies, publish newspapers and operate platforms, conduct research, training and education, own its premises and lawful assets, and litigate and defend its interests in accordance with the law.
Article (47) — Public Media
Publicly funded media shall act impartially and avoid unjustified discrimination between parties. Access to political programmes during elections shall follow objective, published rules consistent with election law.
Article (48) — Offices Incompatible with Membership
While in active service, party membership is prohibited for members of the Federal Supreme Court, judges, members of the Public Prosecution, personnel of the armed forces, internal security forces and intelligence and security agencies, members of the Board of Commissioners, Commission employees involved in the electoral process, and anyone whose governing employment law requires partisan neutrality. They may join after the disqualifying capacity ends.
Article (49) — Civil Servants
A civil servant shall not be prohibited from party membership unless a special law provides otherwise. They shall not campaign, collect funds or use official authority during working hours or with state resources. Public employment discrimination based on lawful membership is prohibited.
Article (50) — Prohibition of Armed Organisation
A party may not establish, own, manage or fund a military or paramilitary formation, armed force, training camp or weapons store. It may not use or threaten armed force to impose a political or electoral position.
Article (51) — Relations with Security Formations
No party may issue operational orders or instructions to a state security or military formation, appoint its commanders or allocate resources to it outside constitutional and legal frameworks. An individual's political status before or after their completed service shall not, by itself, establish a prohibited organisational relationship.
Article (52) — Weapons and Protection
Protection of party premises and leaders shall be governed by the laws on weapons, security companies and competent agencies. No armed party protection structure independent of the state's legal system may be established.
Article (53) — Prohibition of Terrorism and Organised Hatred
A party may not be established or continue its activities if terrorism, racism, takfir, sectarian cleansing, genocide or organised racial discrimination forms the basis of its programme or activities. Law No. (32) of 2016 Prohibiting the Ba'ath Party and Racist, Terrorist and Takfiri Entities, Parties and Activities shall apply within its scope.
Article (54) — Prohibition of the Banned Ba'ath Party
Article (7) of the Constitution and Law No. (32) of 2016 shall be observed. Party registration may not be used to reconstitute the banned Ba'ath Party or its fronts under a new name.
Article (55) — Independence from Foreign Influence
A party's political and organisational decisions shall be independent. It may not be subject to binding direction from a foreign state, agency, party or organisation, or give a foreign entity authority to choose its leaders or candidates or control its funds.
Article (56) — Lawful International Cooperation
A party may openly establish relations, engage in dialogue and exchange expertise with international parties and institutions, provided this involves no prohibited funding or organisational or intelligence direction. Institutional relationships involving material benefits shall be disclosed under this Law.
Article (57) — State Sovereignty and Unity
A party may not use violence or armed force to harm Iraq's sovereignty, unity or constitutional order. This does not prevent peaceful advocacy of changes to the Constitution, laws or public policy through constitutional means.
Article (58) — State Premises
A party may not establish permanent premises in a governmental, military, security or judicial institution or use state buildings, vehicles or equipment for its own activities, except under general, published rules accessible to all, and for fair consideration where leasing is lawful.
Article (59) — Prevention of Institutional Coercion
No public official, institution director or employer may compel employees, contractors or service beneficiaries to attend party activities, donate, register with a party or vote for it.
Article (60) — Economic Activities
A party shall not engage in profit-seeking commerce as its primary purpose. It may manage its assets, lease property, invest deposits in low-risk banking instruments, sell publications and promotional products, and organise paid events. Proceeds shall be subject to accounting, auditing and taxation where applicable.
Article (61) — Related Entities
If a party establishes a research, training, media or charitable institution, or a company to manage its assets, it shall disclose ownership, control and financial transactions with that entity. Such entities may not be used to circumvent donation or political expenditure restrictions.
Chapter Six — Private Political Funding
Article (62) — Funding Principles
Political funding shall rest on legality, traceability, concentration limits, prohibition of foreign or anonymous funds, disclosure proportionate to the amount of funding, and separation of party resources from those of the state and candidates.
Article (63) — Funding Sources
Party funds shall comprise membership dues, permitted donations from natural persons, income from lawful assets and activities, public funding under this Law, and any other source expressly permitted by law.
Article (64) — Membership Dues
A party shall specify membership dues in its financial rules. Dues exceeding ten times the minimum wage in a single year shall be treated as donations for funding-limit and disclosure purposes.
Article (65) — Individual Donations
An Iraqi natural person may donate their own lawful funds to a registered party up to an annual maximum equivalent to one hundred times the minimum wage for each party. Donations may not be split or channelled through other persons to evade the ceiling.
Article (66) — Donations to Candidates
A natural person's aggregate donations to a single candidate during an electoral cycle shall not exceed twenty-five times the minimum wage. Goods and services provided to the campaign shall count towards the ceiling at market value.
Article (67) — Candidate Self-Funding
A candidate may finance their campaign from personal funds within the spending ceiling. The portion exempt from the donor ceiling shall not exceed fifty times the minimum wage and shall be shown separately in the financial report.
Article (68) — Prohibition of Donations by Legal Persons
Companies, banks, associations, trade unions, organisations and entities with legal personality may not directly fund a party or candidate or pay their expenses. This does not prohibit their lawful non-electoral activities or non-partisan civic education.
Article (69) — Prohibition of Public Funds
No money or benefit may be accepted from a ministry, governmental body, public company, enterprise in which the state holds a controlling interest, or budget-funded institution, except public funding expressly provided for in this Law.
Article (70) — Prohibition of Foreign Funding
Acceptance of a donation, loan or benefit from a foreign state or government, a non-Iraqi natural person, a foreign legal person, an international organisation or a foreign party is prohibited, whether directly or through a third party.
Article (71) — Iraqis Residing Abroad
An Iraqi citizen residing outside Iraq may donate their own lawful funds through a traceable banking channel, subject to verification of identity and source of funds and provided the donation is not made on behalf of a foreign entity.
Article (72) — Anonymous Donations
Donations from unidentified sources may not be accepted. If the donor cannot be identified after receipt, the amount shall be frozen and returned to its source where possible. Otherwise, it shall be transferred to the Public Treasury by Department decision after the party has been given the right to object.
Article (73) — Cash Donations
No cash donation exceeding half the minimum wage may be accepted. Any larger donation shall pass through a bank account or licensed electronic payment method in the donor's name.
Article (74) — In-Kind Donations
Goods, services and non-commercial discounts shall be valued at fair market value on the date provided. The party shall issue a receipt stating their description and value. Personal non-professional volunteer services shall not constitute a financial donation unless a third party pays the volunteer.
Article (75) — Loans
A party or campaign may borrow only from a licensed bank or financial institution on disclosed market terms, or from a natural person within their donation ceiling if the loan is interest-free or on preferential terms. Forgiving a political debt in a way that conceals an unlawful donation is prohibited.
Article (76) — The Actual Donor
The identity of the actual owner of the money shall be recorded, rather than that of the intermediary transferring it. Providing money in another person's name or through their account to conceal the donor constitutes a serious violation.
Article (77) — Third-Party Payments
Any expense paid by a person on behalf of and in coordination with a party or candidate shall count as both a donation to and expenditure by that party or candidate and be subject to ceilings and disclosure, even if it does not pass through the bank account.
Article (78) — Online Fundraising
Licensed fundraising platforms that verify donor identity and produce an auditable record may be used. Anonymous accounts or tools preventing identification of the source of funds are prohibited.
Article (79) — Virtual Assets
A party or candidate shall not directly accept crypto or virtual assets. If later financial legislation permits dealing in them, they shall be acceptable for political funding only after conversion through a licensed provider into traceable currency and verification of the owner's identity and the assets' source.
Article (80) — Fundraising Events
Fundraising events may be held. Any ticket price or contribution above the market value of the service shall be recorded as a donation, and donation limits and disclosure requirements shall apply to each contributor.
Article (81) — Unconditional Grants for Civic Activities
A foreign entity may not pay for a party activity under the description of training, research or travel where the party or its leadership is the direct financial beneficiary. Participation in open, multilateral, non-partisan international programmes is permitted subject to disclosure and provided the party receives neither cash nor assets.
Article (82) — Deposit of Funds
All income whose daily aggregate exceeds the minimum wage shall be deposited in approved bank accounts within three working days. Cash on hand shall be limited to a low, proportionate amount prescribed by financial regulations.
Article (83) — Separation of Funds
Party funds may not be deposited in a leader's, employee's or candidate's personal account, nor commingled with the funds of an associated company or organisation.
Article (84) — Return of Prohibited Funds
The party shall return a prohibited donation within ten working days of discovering it and notify the Department. If return is impossible, the amount shall be transferred to a public deposit account pending its legal resolution.
Chapter Seven — Public Funding of Political Parties
Article (85) — Principle of Public Funding
The Budget Law may allocate annual public funding to parties to strengthen pluralism and reduce dependence on major donors. No vested entitlement to a fixed amount shall arise beyond the appropriation approved annually.
Article (86) — Eligibility Conditions
Eligibility for public funding requires submission of audited accounts, convening the periodic congress, absence of a final funding suspension decision, and serious participation in the most recent federal or local election appropriate to the party's scope. Instructions shall define serious participation without raising the threshold so high as unreasonably to exclude emerging parties.
Article (87) — Distribution Formula
The annual appropriation shall be divided into three components: fifty per cent equally among eligible parties; thirty per cent according to each party's share of valid votes in the most recent election appropriate to its scope, without reference to seat numbers; and twenty per cent for the small-donation matching programme under Article (88).
Article (88) — Small-Donation Matching
The state shall match, dinar for dinar, individual donations not exceeding twice the minimum wage per donor per year, within the ceiling of the party's share of matching funds. Donations by senior leaders, candidates to themselves or immediate family members to the electoral account shall not be matched.
Article (89) — New Parties
A registered party that has not yet contested an election may benefit from small-donation matching if it collects documented donations from at least three hundred natural-person donors within a year. It shall not receive the equal or vote-based shares before contesting its first election.
Article (90) — Use of Public Funding
Public funding shall be used for administration, training, research, political communication, premises rent, technology, democratic activities and advancing the participation of women, young people and persons with disabilities. It may be used for campaigning within the electoral spending ceiling if the Budget Law expressly permits this.
Article (91) — Prohibition of Personal Use
Public funding may not be used to purchase personal assets for a leader or member, pay a personal criminal fine, give gifts to voters, finance armed activity, or be transferred to a foreign entity or associated company without genuine market-value consideration.
Article (92) — Auditing Public Funding
Public funding shall be audited by the Federal Board of Supreme Audit in addition to Department oversight. The Board may recover amounts spent outside their authorised purposes through a judgment or decision appealable under the law.
Article (93) — Suspension of Public Funding
Public funding may be suspended only by a reasoned decision after hearing the party. Suspension may be total or partial and shall be commensurate with the violation. It may not be used to obstruct opposition or punish a party for its political positions.
Article (94) — Annual Publication
The Ministry of Finance and Department shall annually publish, in downloadable data form, the total appropriation, the amount received by each party, the calculation basis and amounts recovered or suspended.
Article (95) — Review of the Formula
The legislature shall review the public funding formula at intervals no longer than eight years, following an independent report by the Federal Board of Supreme Audit and the Commission on its effects on competition and pluralism. Its weighting may not be amended by executive instructions.
Chapter Eight — Electoral Campaigns and Political Expenditure
Article (96) — Campaign Scope
This Chapter applies to any paid activity intended to influence the election of a candidate, list or party, or a referendum. Financial obligations apply from the opening of electoral registration or the date set by the Commission under election law, whichever is earlier.
Article (97) — Campaign Treasurer
Every party or list and independent candidate shall appoint a campaign treasurer responsible for keeping records, authorising payments and preparing reports. This does not relieve the candidate or party of liability for violations they know of or order.
Article (98) — Electoral Account
A single bank account or a group of approved, disclosed accounts shall be opened for the campaign. Income and payments exceeding half the minimum wage shall pass through them. Parallel personal accounts are prohibited.
Article (99) — Spending Ceiling
The Commission shall set spending ceilings by reasoned decision published at least one hundred and eighty days before polling, using a formula that considers the constituency's voter numbers, media and transport costs, inflation and election type, with an absolute cap preventing constituency size from generating unlimited expenditure.
Article (100) — Transparency in Setting the Ceiling
Before adopting ceilings, the Commission shall publish its calculation methodology and data and conduct a public consultation lasting at least thirty days. Its decision may be challenged judicially within fifteen days of publication.
Article (101) — Party and List Ceilings
A party or list shall have a separate ceiling for central expenditure in addition to its candidates' ceilings. A candidate's ceiling may not be multiplied automatically by the number of candidates if that produces a disproportionate total. The Commission shall apply a decreasing coefficient for shared expenditure.
Article (102) — Allocation of Shared Expenditure
The cost of advertising, events or services shared by a party and its candidates shall be apportioned according to the benefit to each under a published methodology. Expenditure coordinated with a third party shall count towards the beneficiary's ceiling.
Article (103) — Pre-Campaign Expenditure
Expenses paid before the official campaign period shall count towards the campaign ceiling if their principal purpose is to support an announced or prospective candidate or a list in a specific election. Continuing ordinary party expenses shall be excluded if their nature or scale has not been altered for electoral purposes.
Article (104) — Independent Expenditure
Citizens may engage in independent political expression. If a person's or non-partisan group's spending exceeds five times the minimum wage in one election, it shall register as an independent spender and disclose funding sources and expenditure under this Law.
Article (105) — Prohibition of Circumvention through Third Parties
If an independent spender coordinates the message, timing, audience or resources with a party or candidate, the expenditure shall be treated as coordinated and added to the campaign account. Regulations shall establish objective criteria for proving coordination without presuming it from mere similarity of political position.
Article (106) — Sources of Independent Expenditure Funding
An independent entity may not accept foreign or anonymous funds, or funds from legal persons, to finance paid electoral campaigning. Professional journalism and independent editorial coverage and analysis are not subject to this Article.
Article (107) — Donations during the Campaign
Within seventy-two hours, the campaign shall disclose every donation or aggregate donations from one donor exceeding five times the minimum wage, stating the donor's name, amount and date, unless a judicial order prohibits publication to protect the person's safety.
Article (108) — Periodic Campaign Reports
The campaign shall submit a concise financial report to the Department every seven days during the final thirty days before polling, stating total income, expenditure and outstanding liabilities. It shall be published in a standard format.
Article (109) — Final Report
The party or candidate shall submit a detailed final report within thirty days of the announcement of preliminary results and update it within thirty days of resolving outstanding liabilities or appeals. It shall state donations, expenses, contracts, debts and remaining assets.
Article (110) — Use of State Resources
State funds, employees, vehicles, buildings, equipment, databases and official accounts may not be used for a campaign, except neutral security and logistical services required by law and provided to all eligible recipients under uniform criteria.
Article (111) — Official Activities during the Campaign
A public official may not combine a state-funded official event with electoral activity, or distribute a grant, appointment, contract, land or exceptional service with the intention of influencing voters. Ordinary governmental duties may continue, provided they are financially and communicatively separated from the campaign.
Article (112) — Employees and Working Hours
No public employee may be assigned campaign work during working hours or using state resources. Personal political activity outside working hours is permitted if the employee's position is not legally required to be neutral and they do not use official authority or capacity.
Article (113) — State Contractors
A political donation or electoral support may not be made a condition of awarding or continuing a public contract. Requesting or providing it in return for a contractual benefit constitutes corruption and shall be referred to the competent authorities. Campaigns shall disclose donations exceeding the publication threshold from natural persons holding a controlling interest in a company contracting with the state.
Article (114) — Public Media
The authority responsible for public media shall establish impartial rules for coverage and free or paid airtime during the campaign. It shall provide balanced opportunities under clear criteria that respect pluralism and prevent public funding from becoming propaganda for the Government or a particular party.
Article (115) — Paid Advertising
Every paid political advertisement shall clearly identify the entity that paid for it. Purchasing advertising for a party or candidate under a pseudonym or through an intermediary concealing the actual funder is prohibited.
Article (116) — Advertising Rates
Media outlets and domestic advertising providers shall apply published, non-discriminatory rates to political entities contracting under comparable conditions. They shall retain contracts and invoices for five years and provide them for lawful audit.
Article (117) — Digital Advertising
The campaign shall register every paid digital advertisement above a threshold set by the Commission in a public electronic library containing a copy of the advertisement, its funder, display period, platform, amount or range of expenditure, and general targeting criteria, without disclosing voters' personal data.
Article (118) — Misleading Synthetic Content
If a campaign uses a realistically generated or manipulated image, audio recording or video that could lead recipients to believe a real person said or did something they did not say or do, it shall display a clear notice that the content was generated or manipulated. Such content may not impersonate an official electoral authority or falsify voting instructions.
Article (119) — Automated Accounts and Manipulation
Purchasing fake-account networks or conducting coordinated automation to conceal the true source of campaigning or artificially amplify support is prohibited. This does not include disclosed scheduling or content-management tools that do not impersonate individuals.
Article (120) — Vote Buying and Benefits
Providing money, a gift, a personal service or a promise of an individual benefit conditional on voting, abstaining or proving one's choice is prohibited. General political programmes or governmental assistance based on law and objective criteria do not constitute vote buying unless used selectively for electoral purposes.
Article (121) — Threats and Incitement
Campaign threats of violence, direct incitement to violence, or incitement to discrimination constituting incitement to hostility or violence are prohibited. This Article shall not be interpreted to criminalise sharp political criticism, peaceful opposition or historical debate.
Article (122) — Places of Worship and Public Institutions
Places of worship, schools, hospitals and military and security premises shall not be used for organised party campaigning. Universities and civilian public institutions may host debates or political meetings where invitations and rules are equal and impartial and services are not disrupted.
Article (123) — Electoral Silence
The election law or campaign regulations shall specify a short, proportionate electoral silence period. It shall not extend to citizens' unpaid personal discussion in an unenforceable manner. During that period, purchasing new advertisements or broadcasting paid campaigning is prohibited under the published rules.
Article (124) — Removal of Materials
The party and candidate shall remove physical materials they installed on public property within a period set by the Commission after polling. Actual removal costs may be recovered from a deposit or financial guarantee where regulations provide for this proportionately.
Chapter Nine — Accounts, Disclosure and Auditing
Article (125) — Bank Accounts
A party shall open one or more accounts in its name with licensed Iraqi banks and disclose their banking identifiers to the Department without public disclosure. Undeclared accounts and unjustified retention of party funds outside the banking system are prohibited.
Article (126) — Standardised Accounting
Parties and campaigns shall keep accounting records under a standard chart of accounts issued by the Commission in consultation with the Federal Board of Supreme Audit and accounting bodies, separating dues, donations, public funding, campaigns, assets and liabilities.
Article (127) — Annual Statements
Within one hundred and twenty days of its financial year-end, the party shall submit annual financial statements covering the balance sheet, income, expenses, cash flows, debts, assets and related-party transactions, signed by the financial officer and authorised leadership.
Article (128) — External Audit
If a party's annual income exceeds one hundred times the minimum wage, its statements shall be audited by a registered independent certified accountant or audit firm. The responsible auditor shall rotate periodically under instructions preventing prolonged dependence or conflicts of interest.
Article (129) — Federal Board of Supreme Audit Oversight
The Federal Board of Supreme Audit shall audit public funds granted to parties and may examine other accounts to the extent needed to verify that public and private funds have not been commingled or the law violated, while respecting party independence and members' privacy.
Article (130) — Commission Oversight
The Department shall audit political finance and campaign reports and reconcile them against bank data, invoices, advertisements and contracts. It may request specific explanations within a reasonable period, without turning oversight into political inspection or policing of opinion.
Article (131) — Banking Cooperation
Under Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing Law No. (39) of 2015, banks and financial institutions shall conduct due diligence, identify beneficial owners and report suspicious transactions to the competent authority. The Commission shall not replace the Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing Office.
Article (132) — Referral to Competent Authorities
If the Department identifies serious indicators of money laundering, terrorism financing, corruption or a tax offence, it shall refer the facts and documents to the competent authority and maintain the confidentiality required for investigation.
Article (133) — Public Donor Disclosure
A natural-person donor's name and aggregate annual donations shall be published if they exceed five times the minimum wage. For smaller donations, only totals and donor numbers shall be published to protect privacy and encourage small contributions, while identities remain available to the regulator.
Article (134) — Expenditure Disclosure
Parties and campaigns shall publish expenditure categories and contracts exceeding ten times the minimum wage, stating the contractor's name, value and purpose. Personal protection details and commercial information that does not affect identification of the financial beneficiary shall be exempt from public disclosure but remain available to the auditor.
Article (135) — Related Parties
Any contract with a leader, executive-body member, their spouse, ascendants or descendants, or a company in which any of them holds a material interest shall be disclosed, stating its value and the contractor selection method.
Article (136) — Record Retention
Parties and campaigns shall retain financial records, receipts, contracts, account statements and advertising data for ten years after the end of the year or campaign. Electronic copies shall permit verification of their integrity.
Article (137) — Open Data
The Commission shall publish reports, disclosures and final decisions in searchable, downloadable and reusable formats, providing a simple public interface and a detailed version for researchers and journalists, with unnecessary personal data removed.
Article (138) — Right to Correction
A party, donor or contractor may request correction of erroneous public data. The Department shall determine the request within ten working days and retain a record of amendments.
Article (139) — Professional Confidentiality
Commission staff and auditors shall keep confidential unpublished information obtained through their work. It shall not be used for partisan, commercial or security purposes outside the law. Mandatory public disclosures remain exempt from confidentiality.
Chapter Ten — Oversight, Penalties, Review and Dissolution
Article (140) — Enforcement Principles
Penalties shall follow legality, proportionality, graduation and the right of defence, distinguishing rectifiable accounting errors from serious deliberate violations. No penalty shall be imposed because of a political position or criticism of a public body.
Article (141) — Notice and Rectification
For a non-serious violation, the Department shall issue notice specifying the facts, provision and deadline, allowing the party or campaign at least fifteen days to respond or rectify the matter before a penalty is imposed, unless funds or evidence risk being lost.
Article (142) — Administrative Measures
Depending on the violation's gravity, the Department may issue a warning, order rectification, require publication of a corrective statement or return of prohibited funds, suspend part of public funding, or impose an administrative fine within statutory ceilings.
Article (143) — Administrative Fine
Fines for financial violations shall be calculated as a percentage of the unlawful or undeclared amount, subject to minimum and maximum limits set by annual financial legislation or a legislatively reviewed schedule. They shall not exceed three times the violation's value except in cases of deliberate repetition or concealment.
Article (144) — Recovery of Benefits
Payment of a fine shall not preclude repayment of improperly spent public money, prohibited donations or unlawful benefits. Recovery and confiscation shall not result in taking the same funds twice.
Article (145) — Electoral Penalties
Where a violation concerns an electoral campaign, the Department shall refer the matter to the competent electoral judicial authority if the remedy may affect a candidate's eligibility or an electoral result. A candidate may be excluded only for a serious deliberate violation, by judicial decision and after their personal involvement is established.
Article (146) — No Collective Punishment
A party shall not be dissolved, its participation suspended or its members' rights extinguished because of an individual crime committed by a member or leader unless it is established that the crime was carried out in the party's name or on the orders of a competent party body, or that the party endorsed it and failed to address it despite having the legal ability to do so.
Article (147) — Suspension of Activities
On a reasoned Department application and after hearing the party, the Administrative Court may suspend a specified activity or public funding for no longer than six months if a serious violation continues after a final warning and the harm cannot be prevented by a less restrictive measure.
Article (148) — Grounds for Judicial Dissolution
A party may be dissolved only by final judicial judgment establishing that it created or managed an armed formation; practised terrorism or organised violence for political ends; served as a front for an organisation prohibited by the Constitution; came under actual foreign control threatening the independence of national decision-making; or deliberately repeated serious foreign funding after an earlier final judgment, where a less restrictive measure would be insufficient.
Article (149) — Application for Dissolution
The Department or Public Prosecution shall submit a dissolution application with evidence to the Administrative Court. A party may not be dissolved by administrative decision. The court may reject the application or impose a less restrictive measure if sufficient and proportionate.
Article (150) — Interim Measures
Where a specific, imminent risk exists, the court may freeze an account or halt a particular financial transaction for a limited period to preserve funds or evidence. General political activity may not be suspended as a precautionary measure except in cases of imminent violence and to the narrowest extent.
Article (151) — Appeals
Final administrative decisions under this Law may be challenged before the Administrative Court within thirty days. Its judgments may be appealed before the Supreme Administrative Court. Purely electoral decisions shall follow the appeal procedure prescribed by election law.
Article (152) — Complaints
Any interested person may submit a documented complaint to the Department. The Department shall screen complaints against an initial seriousness threshold, prevent their misuse for political harassment, and notify the parties of a final reasoned outcome within a reasonable period.
Article (153) — Administrative Limitation Period
Financial penalty proceedings for a reporting violation may not begin more than five years after the report was due. For public funds or deliberately concealed foreign funding, limitation shall run only from discovery, subject to criminal limitation rules.
Chapter Eleven — Crimes and Penalties
Article (154) — Deliberate Foreign Funding
Anyone who deliberately requests, accepts or provides prohibited foreign funding to a party or campaign, knowing its source, shall be punished by detention for no longer than three years and a fine of no less than the amount and no more than three times that amount. The funds involved shall be confiscated by judicial judgment.
Article (155) — Nominee Donors
Anyone who provides or receives a donation under a fictitious donor's name, splits funds, or uses an account, company or intermediary to conceal the actual donor or evade a ceiling shall, where fraudulent intent is established, be punished by a fine and, in serious cases, detention for no longer than two years.
Article (156) — Electoral Misuse of Public Funds
Any public official who deliberately orders state money, assets or employees' work to be diverted to an electoral campaign shall be punished under applicable law and required to repay the value of the benefit. This Law does not preclude a more severe penalty under integrity legislation or the Penal Code.
Article (157) — Political Coercion
Anyone who uses official authority or threatens loss of a public service, job or contract to compel a person to join a party, donate, vote or abstain shall be punished by the more severe penalty under applicable laws and, where appropriate, an additional fine under political finance rules.
Article (158) — Armed Formations
Without prejudice to terrorism, weapons and penal laws, anyone who establishes or manages an armed formation, training camp or unlawful weapons store in a party's name shall be punished. A final conviction may serve as evidence in party dissolution proceedings where Article (148)'s conditions are met.
Article (159) — Falsification of Accounts
Anyone who deliberately destroys or falsifies political finance records or submits a fictitious invoice or contract to conceal a material source or use of funds shall be punished by detention for no longer than two years and a fine proportionate to the amount. Unintentional accounting errors shall not be criminalised.
Article (160) — Obstruction of Audit
Anyone who, after a final judicial or administrative warning, deliberately refuses to provide a legally required record or supplies materially false information to obstruct an audit shall be punished by a fine. Suspected forgery or concealment of a crime shall be referred to the judiciary.
Article (161) — Vote Buying
Vote buying and electoral bribery shall be subject to the penalties prescribed by election and criminal laws. Amounts paid constitute unlawful expenditure subject to recovery and financial penalties under this Law.
Article (162) — Liability of Legal Persons
Where a violation is committed in a company's or institution's name or for its benefit, the legal person may be fined and temporarily barred from public contracting under the law if serious management failings are established. No owner's or employee's personal liability shall be presumed without evidence.
Article (163) — No Detention for Formal Violations
No custodial penalty shall be imposed solely for a late report, misclassification of an expense or formal deficiency if corrected within the prescribed period and unaccompanied by deliberate concealment of prohibited funds, forgery or corruption.
Article (164) — More Severe Penalties
This Chapter does not prejudice any more severe penalty under counter-terrorism, anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing, penal, integrity, weapons or election laws. No person may be punished criminally twice for the same act.
Chapter Twelve — Alliances, Mergers, Splits and Voluntary Dissolution
Article (165) — Alliances
Two or more parties may establish an electoral or political alliance by written agreement specifying its name, representation, decision-making process, accounts and obligations. It shall be filed with the Department within electoral deadlines.
Article (166) — Alliance Finances
An alliance that raises or spends funds shall open a separate account and be subject to funding and campaign provisions. Member parties remain responsible for their own obligations. An alliance may not be used to multiply donation ceilings or conceal funding sources.
Article (167) — Mergers
Two or more parties may merge by decisions made under their internal rules. The merged entity shall submit its rules, programme and arrangements for assets and debts. Rights and obligations shall transfer under the agreement after the merger is registered.
Article (168) — Splits
Internal rules shall govern the effects of a split on the name, assets and membership. In a dispute, the competent civil court shall determine property and name or mark issues on the basis of those rules, internal decisions and general legal rules. The Department shall intervene only to update the register.
Article (169) — Voluntary Dissolution
A party may dissolve itself under its internal rules by decision of its highest competent body. It shall appoint a legal liquidator, settle debts and return any public funding repayable.
Article (170) — Assets after Dissolution
After obligations are settled, party assets shall not be distributed to members or leaders. Unspent public funding shall revert to the Treasury; remaining assets shall be directed under the internal rules to a merged party or lawful Iraqi public-benefit institution, with judicial approval where disputed.
Chapter Thirteen — Transitional and Final Provisions
Article (171) — Compliance by Existing Parties
Parties registered before this Law enters into force shall retain their legal personality and bring their internal rules, accounts and financial rules into compliance within twelve months. They shall not be required to collect founders' signatures again unless their licence has been finally revoked.
Article (172) — Transitional Reports
Within six months, existing parties shall submit an opening statement of bank accounts, assets, debts and related entities. They shall receive a period to rectify past formal violations that involve neither prohibited funds nor criminal conduct.
Article (173) — Continuity of the Department
The Department of Political Party and Organisation Affairs shall continue within the Commission with its staff, records, rights and obligations. Its electronic systems and procedures shall be updated under this Law without establishing a new authority unless the Commission Law provides otherwise.
Article (174) — Regulations and Instructions
Within one hundred and eighty days of publication, the Board of Commissioners shall issue the necessary regulations and instructions in consultation with the Federal Board of Supreme Audit, the Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing Office, and judicial bodies within their respective powers. These may not introduce a formation condition, crime or funding prohibition not provided for by law.
Article (175) — Transitional Campaign Ceilings
Until spending-ceiling regulations are issued under Articles (99) and (100), the ceilings in force at the most recent federal election shall continue insofar as they do not conflict with this Law. The Commission shall issue the new formula before the first election held after one year has elapsed from entry into force.
Article (176) — Alignment of Electoral Regulations
Commission campaign and finance regulations shall be repealed or amended insofar as they conflict with this Law. Candidate registration, polling, complaints and appeals shall remain governed by election law unless a specific provision herein states otherwise.
Article (177) — Related Laws
This Law does not prejudice Law No. (32) of 2016 Prohibiting the Ba'ath Party and Racist, Terrorist and Takfiri Entities, Parties and Activities, or Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing Law No. (39) of 2015. Their provisions shall apply within their respective scopes.
Article (178) — Repeal
Political Parties Law No. (36) of 2015 is repealed from this Law's entry into force, together with conflicting provisions and instructions. Valid legal effects and final judicial decisions arising under the repealed Law shall remain effective.
Article (179) — Entry into Force
This Law enters into force ninety days after publication in the Official Gazette. Campaign ceiling and electoral disclosure provisions shall apply to the first election whose campaign begins more than one hundred and eighty days after publication, unless the new rules have already been issued and stabilised before then.
Statement of reasons
To protect constitutional freedom to establish and join political parties; consolidate pluralism and peaceful transfer of power; remove disproportionate formation restrictions; implement the binding effects of constitutional judgments concerning the Political Parties Law; regulate public and private funding sources and prevent foreign and anonymous money and use of state resources; consolidate campaign finance, political expenditure, digital advertising and third-party rules; and strengthen disclosure, audit and accountability while safeguarding defence rights, review and proportionate penalties, this Law is enacted.
Explanatory memorandum
1. Why Replacement Rather than Partial Amendment?
The existing Law played an important foundational role after 2015, but was drafted before current developments in digital payments, targeted advertising and third-party expenditure, and before the present electoral Commission structure settled. The Federal Supreme Court also invalidated some provisions, while additional layers of campaign and penalty regulations emerged. Comprehensive replacement legislation is therefore clearer than successive amendments leaving readers and regulators to navigate conflicting or dispersed texts.
2. Formation Threshold and Fee
The current Law required two thousand founders, and the Party Affairs Department's current page lists fees and services under which registration alone costs twenty-five million dinars, in addition to other charges. No democratic necessity justifies making freedom of association depend on substantial financial capacity. The Bill chooses five hundred founders as a reasonable indication of seriousness, prohibits a university degree requirement in line with the principle established by the Federal Supreme Court, and confines the fee to actual administrative cost.
3. Federal and Regional Jurisdiction
Given Iraq's federal structure and constitutional allocation of powers, the Bill distinguishes a party participating in federal elections from an organisation whose activities are confined to a region. Valid regional registration is preserved, but participation in federal elections requires federal recognition and compliance with national finance and campaign rules. Federal law thereby neither extinguishes the region's regulatory domain nor permits an oversight vacuum in federal elections.
4. Parties and Weapons
The criterion is an organisational and operational relationship with armed force, not previous political affiliation or social identity. The Bill prohibits a party from commanding or funding a security formation, or managing weapons stores, camps or an independent protection force. Conversely, it does not automatically attribute an institution's conduct to the party of every person who formerly served in a security institution. This distinction is necessary to protect state neutrality and prevent punishment based on presumed affiliation.
5. Why Prohibit Donations by Legal Persons?
Funding from companies and entities makes the true interested party harder to identify, particularly where state contractors or overlapping ownership networks are involved. The Bill chooses a simpler channel: direct donations come from identified individual citizens within a ceiling, while companies and organisations may continue lawful civic and media activities without transferring money to campaigns. This closes a common route for circumvention through front companies.
6. Iraqis Abroad and Foreign Funding
Foreign funding from states, non-Iraqi persons and overseas entities is prohibited, but an Iraqi citizen living abroad is not treated as foreign merely because of residence. They may donate personal funds through a verifiable banking channel, provided they do not act for a foreign entity. The rule balances citizens' rights with the risk of foreign influence.
7. Public Funding after the Federal Supreme Court Decision
The central constitutional objection to the 2015 formula concerned allocating eighty per cent of the subsidy according to seats, entrenching large parties with public funds. The Bill does not merely reproduce that formula at a lower percentage; it changes its logic. Half the amount provides an equal base for qualifying parties, thirty per cent follows votes as a direct measure of popular support, and twenty per cent matches small donations to encourage a broad funding base. The percentages remain in the Law itself so that an executive body cannot change the rules of competition through instructions.
8. Spending Ceilings
Instead of fixing an amount eroded by inflation, or multiplying it by candidate numbers to produce an enormous ceiling, the Law specifies the calculation elements and requires the Commission to publish the methodology and data and conduct public consultation 180 days beforehand. It requires an absolute cap and a decreasing coefficient for shared expenditure. Ceilings can thus be updated without becoming standardless discretionary powers.
9. Independent Expenditure and Third Parties
Restrictions on parties and candidates may become merely formal if a third party can spend without limits or disclosure in coordination with them. The Bill therefore distinguishes personal expression and independent journalism, which fall outside ordinary financial oversight, from substantial paid expenditure intended to influence an election. Where coordination is established, spending is added to the campaign account; where it is genuinely independent, the spender becomes subject to disclosure above a reasonable threshold.
10. Digital Advertising and Synthetic Content
The Bill does not prohibit generative or editing technologies. It targets deception about the funder's identity and realistic depictions of real individuals. It requires identification of the advertisement's payer, notices on synthetic material that could falsely suggest an act or statement, and prohibitions on impersonating electoral authorities or purchasing fake networks to conceal the source. This is narrower and more enforceable than a vague ban on “misinformation” that could be misused against opposition.
11. Penalties and Dissolution
The Bill establishes that ordinary accounting errors are addressed through correction and proportionate fines, while deliberate crimes go to the courts. Dissolution is not an administrative tool: it is a last resort for cases such as armed formations, terrorism, actual foreign control or repeated serious foreign funding after judgment. It also prohibits collective punishment of an entire party for an individual's act that the organisation did not endorse.
Alignment with Existing Legislation
| Reference | Action |
|---|---|
| Political Parties Law No. 36 of 2015 | Repeal and replacement, preserving legal personalities, valid legal effects and final judicial decisions. |
| Independent High Electoral Commission Law No. 31 of 2019, as amended | Retain the Commission and Party Affairs Department, aligning the Department's powers and appeal routes with the new Law. |
| Applicable Election Law and Campaign Regulations | Keep voting, nomination, results and electoral appeals within election law, transferring general, permanent financial rules to this Law. |
| Law No. 32 of 2016 Prohibiting the Ba'ath Party and Racist, Terrorist and Takfiri Entities, Parties and Activities | Retain and apply it within its scope without creating a parallel or broader definition of prohibited organisations. |
| Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing Law No. 39 of 2015 | Refer suspicious transactions and due diligence to the competent financial system, without granting the Commission the Anti-Money Laundering Office's powers. |
| Integrity, Penal, Weapons and Public Employment Laws | Apply the more severe penalty and relevant employment restrictions and prevent duplicate criminalisation. |
Transitional Provisions and Implementation Requirements
Within 90 days: Update registration forms, abolish fees and services inconsistent with the Law, and establish a unified electronic application process.
Within 180 days: Issue the accounting and finance guide, campaign spending-ceiling regulations, digital disclosure rules, independent expenditure register and open-data rules.
Within 12 months: Bring existing parties into compliance, complete disclosure of assets, debts and related entities, and implement periodic leadership elections according to internal-rule deadlines.
180 days before any new campaign: Publish the spending-ceiling methodology and applicable amounts so that the rule does not change during competition.
Financial and Implementation Implications
The Law does not require a new authority, court or financial agency. Its financial impact therefore centres on upgrading electronic systems, auditing, data analysis and training. Most functions can be performed within the existing Party Affairs Department, Board of Commissioners, Federal Board of Supreme Audit and Anti-Money Laundering Office, using organised data exchange rather than parallel institutions.
Public funding is an optional annual fiscal commitment determined by the Budget Law. The Bill fixes neither a lump sum nor a budget percentage, avoiding an open-ended obligation. If the state allocates funding, the Law specifies only its distribution and oversight. The draft budget should include a statement of the proposed amount, number of eligible parties, average share and matching effects before the vote.
Moving to searchable disclosure requires initial investment in a data portal and secure banking links, but reduces manual audit costs and enables risk-based oversight. The Commission's annual report shall identify operating costs, report and violation numbers, and recovered amounts, allowing assessment of whether the oversight structure delivers real public value.
Relevant International Standards
The Bill rests on the principle that parties are an extension of freedom of association and political participation. United Nations Human Rights Committee General Comment No. (25) confirms that freedom to organise in political parties is an essential element of Article (25) of the International Covenant, and that expression, assembly and association rights are necessary for effective participation. Registration and dissolution restrictions must therefore be specific, necessary and proportionate, rather than tools for licensing political ideas acceptable to the Government.
The joint Venice Commission and OSCE/ODIHR Guidelines on Political Party Regulation provide a framework balancing party freedom with democracy, transparency and funding requirements. The Bill applies this approach selectively to Iraq's circumstances: an independent regulator, judicial oversight, published funding rules and dissolution only as a last resort.
Iraq also acceded to the United Nations Convention against Corruption on 17 March 2008. Article (7/3) calls on states to consider enhancing transparency in the financing of candidatures and political parties. The Bill translates that into bank accounts, identification of actual donors, public reports and coordination with the anti-money laundering system, rather than a statement of transparency in principle alone.
Sources and references
- Constitution of the Republic of Iraq, 2005 — Iraqi Council of Representatives
- Iraqi Official Gazette, Issue 4383 — Political Parties Law No. 36 of 2015
- Ministry of Justice — Announcement of Issue 4383 containing Political Parties Law No. 36 of 2015
- Ministry of Justice — Political Parties Law No. 36 of 2015 among Laws Published in 2026
- Independent High Electoral Commission — Department of Political Party and Organisation Affairs, Licensed Parties List and Registration Procedures
- Independent High Electoral Commission — Regulations and Instructions for the Iraqi Council of Representatives Elections, 2025
- Independent High Electoral Commission — Electoral Campaigns and Penal Provisions Guide for the Council of Representatives Elections, 2025
- Independent High Electoral Commission — Party Affairs Department Activities in September 2026
- Independent High Electoral Commission — 2023 Report on Registration of 295 Parties and Monitoring of Congresses and Compliance
- Federal Supreme Court — Analytical Index of Court Judgments and Decisions
- University of Baghdad Legal Study Documenting Federal Supreme Court Decisions 3/Federal/Media/2016 and 67/Federal/Media/2016 concerning the Political Parties Law
- Ministry of Justice — Iraqi Official Gazette, Issue 4420, Law No. 32 of 2016 Prohibiting the Ba'ath Party and Racist, Terrorist and Takfiri Entities, Parties and Activities
- Ministry of Justice — Iraqi Official Gazette, Issue 4387, Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing Law No. 39 of 2015
- Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing Office — Legislation in Force
- United Nations — Iraq's Accession to the United Nations Convention against Corruption on 17 March 2008
- United Nations Human Rights Committee — General Comment No. 25 on Participation in Public Affairs and Electoral Rights
- Venice Commission and OSCE/ODIHR — Joint Guidelines on Political Party Regulation, 2020
- International IDEA — Political Finance Database: Iraq
Ali Zuweid's Political Programme · POL-04