More than 9,000 candidates from nearly 280 political entities vied for the 328 seats in Iraq's parliamentary election held on April 30, the first since the withdrawal of U.S. troops from the country by the end of 2011.

Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki casts his vote for the parliamentary election in the Green Zone of Baghdad, Iraq. [File photo]

But there are some problems with this unprecedented election: rather than attracting votes through governing philosophies or policy expectations, the major alliances and parties that are running in the election rely heavily on sectarian animosity between Sunnis and Shiites. It can be expected that the sectarian tensions will further undermine the already fragile political and social balance in Iraq.

Nuri al-Maliki: Feels like winning more

Nuri al-Maliki is the prime minister of Iraq and leader of the Shiite Islamic Dawa Party. During his tenure, divides between the Sunni, Shiite and Kurd populations continue to exacerbate, the reconstruction has been very slow and security has further deteriorated.

Mr. Maliki has his own difficulties. Iraqi politics has become more divided. Various forces are fighting with each other, which makes it hard for national political institutions to cope. Maliki blames the current situation for inadequate power. According to him, a "majority government" will be the best solution to change the political landscape in Iraq.

The State of Law Coalition that consists of 12 political entities is the embodiment of Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki's strategy of recasting himself as a secular, nationalist leader representing all of Iraq. Although from the beginning of last year, there has been news that the Maliki family was in discord with other political forces, the State of Law Coalition led by Maliki is still very stable.

Maliki put in a lot of effort attracting Shiite voters. Playing the strongman is his strategy. In addition to frequent tough talks with the United States and Israel, he recently publicly condemned Saudi Arabia's "interference" in Iraq's internal affairs. Nevertheless, Maliki never uses tough rhetoric to attack Iran, Syria and other Shiite countries. And Maliki was rewarded for his hard work. His popularity as the Shiites' protector continues to be strong among the Shia public.

The Sunni: brutal competition among coalitions

In contrast to the dominance of the Maliki in the Shiite, it appears that the forces of Iraq's Sunni Muslims are more scattered. They can be divided into five major political forces.

The first is the United for Reform Coalition, which consists of 13 political entities led by parliament speaker Osama al-Nujaifi. This bloc is now a leading Sunni force in Iraq.

The second is the Al-Arabiya Coalition, which includes nine political entities led by Deputy Prime Minister Salih al-Mutlak, leader of the Iraqi Front for National Dialogue, a Sunni Arab political party.