Iraqi election officials announced on Monday that Muqtada al-Sadr, the Shiite cleric and militia leader, is the front-runner in the country's national elections.
Sadr's coalition has won a majority of the votes counted in 16 of Iraq's 18 provinces, officials said, and while he was not a candidate and cannot become prime minister, he could end up choosing the next one. Sadr, 44, led an alliance of several groups, including Sunni businessmen and Communists.
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