Iraqi expats flock to polling booths in Sweden
Online: http://www.thelocal.se/25388/20100307/
Published: 7 Mar 10 09:14 CET
At least 26,000 Iraqis living in Sweden cast their absentee ballots at the weekend, ahead of the Iraqi general elections on Sunday. Some 80,000 Iraqis live in Sweden.
Voting in Sweden was staggered over three days, starting on Friday and ending on Sunday. Polling stations were sent up in Stockholm as well as Gothenburg and Malm.
Public broadcaster Sveriges Radio reported that an estimated 6,000 voted in Sweden on Friday and around 20,000 on Saturday. Voting was being held in 16 countries the world over.
Some 2 million Iraqis live abroad, with an estimated 80,000 in Sweden. The Swedish government recently opened an embassy in Baghdad. At the height of the Iraqi War, Sweden liberalised regulations to ease Iraqi immigration into the country.
Roger Choate (news@thelocal.se)
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