Shi'ite cleric Sadr comes first in Iraq election - officials, sources

FILE PHOTO: A poster of Iraqi Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr in the Sadr City district of Baghdad, Iraq June 21, 2021. The text at the top left of the poster reads 'The Solid Structure'. The text at the bottom right of the poster reads 'Saraya al-Salam, operation command of holy Samarra'. REUTERS/Ahmed Saad

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr's party swept an Iraqi election on Monday, coming first and increasing the number of seats he holds in parliament, according to initial results, officials and a spokesperson for the Sadrist Movement.

A count based on initial results from several Iraqi provinces plus the capital Baghdad, verified by local government officials, suggested Sadr had won more than 70 of the 329 seats in parliament.

A spokesperson for Sadr's office said the number was 73 seats. Local news outlets published the same figure.

An official at Iraq's electoral commission said Sadr had come first but could not immediately confirm how many seats his party had won.

(Reporting by Ahmed Rasheed and John Davison, Editing by William Maclean)