Iraq beats US?

According to the Powerline post linked above as well as this piece by Michael Novak at NRO, we could be in for an election surprise on Sunday where turnout could be much heavier than anticipated.

Haider Ajina passes along a translation of an article in the Arabic newspaper Alsharq Alausat, with the results of a poll conducted by the Iraqi Ministry of Planning:

72.4 % of all of those polled said they would participate in the elections. [Ed.: If so, Iraqi voting will vastly outstrip participation here in the U.S., where 56% of eligible voters contributed to a record turnout in 2004.]

97% of Iraqis in Kurdistan said they would participate in the elections.

96% of Iraqis in the southern provinces (mainly Shiite areas) said they would participate in the elections.

33% of Iraqis in the central provinces (Sunni Area) said they would participate in the elections.

And, thankfully, it looks like the Carter Center won't be involved which won't stop the Dhimmi from declaring that the elections weren't as free, as say, in Venezuela.