“While President Bush touts the January 30, 2005, Iraqi election as a milestone for democracy in the Middle East, by all international election standards, the election was illegitimate. …The U.S.-based Carter Center, acknowledged as the world’s authoritative agency on election monitoring, stated the day before elections took place [January 29, 2005] that none of its key criteria for determining the legitimacy of elections had been met in Iraq. Those criteria include the ability of voters to vote in a free and secure environment and without fear or intimidation, the ability of candidates to have access to voters for campaigning, and a freely chosen and independent election commission. In Iraq, elections took place under a declared state of martial law. Heavily armed occupation troops were visible throughout the country. …Even with the military lockdown, nine suicide bombings took place on the day of the elections, killing at least forty-four people. The primary targets were polling places. …Eight candidates were assassinated. There were no international monitors in the country. …Iraq was deemed too dangerous for international election monitors. Most Sunni political parties boycotted the election.”
– Antonia Juhasz, The Bush Agenda, Pages 244-245