This EdgeTheory Narrative Analysis examines how power is consolidated in Iraq after elections—through post-election negotiations and coordinated narrative control—viewed through the lens of Iranian influence.
The report analyzes how Iran-aligned political actors moved quickly following the recent elections to shape legitimacy—treating the vote as a procedural step, not the decisive moment. As results settled, coordinated post-election narratives shifted attention away from electoral outcomes and toward coalition formation, procedural milestones, and claims of inevitability.
Rather than contesting results directly, these narratives worked to define how government formation would be understood and accepted.
The analysis details how post-election narratives were:
- Coordinated across party-affiliated media, political messaging, and aligned network
- Reinforced during key negotiation and parliamentary moments
- Structured to marginalize election winners and normalize coalition-driven outcomes
By shaping narratives around inevitability, stability, and consensus, post-election negotiations become the real arena of power.
