BAGHDAD (Dispatches) – Iraq’s Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi telephoned Moqtada al-Sadr on Tuesday in what appeared to be a political concession after the cleric took the largest number of parliamentary seats in the country's weekend election.
Final results have been delayed amid allegations of vote rigging in northern Iraq, with some Kurdish parties demanding a re-run of the weekend's poll.
A statement from al-Sadr’s office said the premier praised the cleric for helping foster "a secure, democratic atmosphere,” during the campaign and vote.
Sadr's Marching Towards Reform Alliance of Shia nationals and Iraqi communists cobbled together a broad coalition with the aim of entering government and rooting out endemic corruption.
Responding to Abadi’s comments, al-Sadr described his victory as "an achievement for the Iraqi people and its national entitlement."
The electoral commission of Iraq announced that 44.5 percent of those eligible had cast their ballots in the elections.
Over 7,000 candidates contested 329 seats in the parliament that will choose a new president, premier and government in Iraq.
Among major challenges facing the new Iraqi premier is ensuring security and reconstructing the war-torn country.
Daesh unleashed a campaign of death and destruction in Iraq in 2014, overrunning vast swathes in lightning attacks. Iraqi army soldiers and allied fighters then launched operations to eliminate the terrorist group and retake lost territory.
Last December, al-Abadi declared the end of the anti-Daesh campaign in the Arab country. The group’s remnants, though, keep staging sporadic attacks across Iraq.

Iraqis celebrate during the general election in Baghdad on May 14, 2018.