Iraqis head to the polls on Tuesday to elect a new parliament for a four-year term in a vote that will be closely watched in Washington and Tehran.

Here is a look at what could come next and what the regional impact could be.

- What happens after the vote? -

Iraq's Supreme Court must first ratify the election results.

Two weeks later, the newly elected members of parliament should convene for a swearing-in ceremony and to choose their speaker, who by convention should be a member from the Sunni community.

Within 30 days of their first meeting, lawmakers should elect the country's president, who must be a Kurd and receive a two-thirds majority vote.

The president then has to appoint within 15 days a prime minister, who will be named by the largest Shiite bloc, formed through post-election alliances.

Once the prime minister is chosen, he has one month to form a government and present it to parliament for a vote of........

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