POLLS opened across Iraq yesterday in the first national election since the declaration of victory over the Islamic State group.

After hours of low voter turnout, Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi partially lifted a security curfew to encourage more people to come to the polls.

After weeks of official campaigning, no clear frontrunner emerged as Mr al-Abadi faced stiff competition from political parties with closer ties to Iran.

The announcement that a ban on civilian cars and buses in all provinces was lifted came after hours of relatively low turnout in Baghdad.

The curfew had been in place since midnight the night before and many voters complained of having to walk more than 2.5 miles (4km) to reach polling stations.

In central Baghdad, voters supporting Mr al-Abadi said they were doing so because they gave him credit for Iraq's military victory over IS.

In total there are 329 parliament seats at stake, with nearly 7,000 candidates from dozens of political alliances.

The vote was conducted electronically for the first time in an effort to reduce fraud, and polling centres were set up for many of the country's two million people who remain displaced by the war against IS.

The results of the election are expected within 48 hours of the vote, according to the independent body overseeing the election.

Government formation negotiations are expected to drag on for months after that as the dozens of political parties attempt to cobble together a political bloc large enough to hold a majority of seats in parliament.