Iraq's presidency urges quick government formation

Workers recount parliamentary election ballots in Baghdad May 3, 2010.

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Iraq's presidential council warned on Tuesday that further delays in forming a new government could push the country back to violence after a March parliamentary vote produced no outright winner.

The council's warning was issued after the electoral bloc of Shi'ite Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki, which demanded a recount of votes in Baghdad, filed a new complaint asking to halt the process, saying the elections commission was using improper procedures that could produce inaccurate results.

The council, made up of President Jalal Talabani and two vice-presidents, warned that continued delays could "obstruct and fracture the whole electoral and political process."

"The council believes in the necessity of not prolonging the constitutional vacuum in the country," it said in a statement.

U.S. Ambassador Christopher Hill said last week that he was concerned about the length of time it was taking Iraq to form a government and urged politicians to "get this show on the road."

The recount of 2.5 million votes in Baghdad has delayed certification of the final results, raising concerns of a return to sectarian violence as U.S. troops prepare to halt combat operations formally in August.

The recount demand by Maliki's State of Law bloc was seen as an attempt to overturn a slim two-seat lead in the vote posted by the cross-sectarian Iraqiya alliance of secularist former Prime Minister Iyad Allawi, which won strong Sunni support.

The recount began on Monday and was expected to take up to 12 days.

A Shi'ite-led commission whose aim is to prevent followers of Saddam Hussein's outlawed Baath party from returning to power, is challenging votes cast for candidates with alleged Baathists links, most from Iraqiya.

The presidential council said the will of voters and candidates and the judiciary's independence must be respected.

"This is also a way to prevent a return of violence and the dangers of international control (intervention), preserving the independence of Iraq and its sovereignty, unity and safety of its land," it said.

It also called on the Independent High Electoral Commission to send full preliminary election results for 17 of Iraq's 18 provinces, excluding only Baghdad, to the court for ratification as a way of speeding up the final results.

The March 7 election produced no outright winner as all main political alliances fell well short of the 163 seats needed to form a government alone. This forced mainly-Shi'ite, Sunnis-backed and Kurdish factions to start negotiations to form a parliamentary majority.

The alliance negotiations were put on hold until after the Baghdad recount as politicians jostle for an upper hand in the talks.

(Editing by Jim Loney)