Iraq Prepares to Vote

Down But Not Out
The election is also being viewed as a test of the ability of the Iraqi political class to play by the rules and move forward peacefully. "It's hard teaching people who have come out of a dictatorship to negotiate with each other," observes an Iraqi-based American who is tasked with teaching democratic methods, "In a dictatorship all they know is win-lose. It takes time to learn that in a democracy you can have win-win compromises."

• Iraq's Messy Democracy