Iraqis living abroad begin three-day voting to elect new parliament

While most voters in Iraq go to the polls Sunday to choose the 325-seat legislature, voting abroad will be held for three days.

Children wave Iraqi flags and show off signs of national pride in California as Iraqis residing in the US cast their votes.

Iraqi Voter, said, "Last time we voted here in the United States, I was too young. This is actually my first year voting, I was kind of excited for it, I was like, I'm going to be part of my country."

Iraqi polling stations have also been set up in the states of Illinois, Michigan, Tennessee, and in Washington, DC.

Many made a special trip and drove for hours to execute their civic duty.

Abbas Al, Iraqi Voter, said, "We came from Seattle, Washington. It's 14 hours' drive to get here."

In Syria, thousands of Iraqis voted Saturday, where twenty three polling centres were set-up throughout the country.

There is more hope for this year's election than for the previous ballot.

Abdul Fattah Abu Moaz, said, "Before there was chaos and the elections were not workable. I mean there could be fraud at any moment. But now they are more accurate than they were last time. The most important thing is the stability of the country."

There are about 120 overseas polling stations in 16 countries to serve Iraqis abroad.

The UN says around 2 million Iraqis live outside the country.

The majority of them fled violence following the 2003 US-led invasion.