On 15 October 2005, Iraq held a referendum on a proposed new constitution. A dated U.S. Defense Department public-information photograph explicitly records voters lining up at a polling centre in Kirkuk. The site operated under heavy security, but the voting procedure still moved one person at a time.
The referendum formed part of the effort to establish a post-Saddam political order. Views of the draft differed sharply across regions and communities, so the people in one queue were not necessarily choosing the same answer. Supporters and opponents nevertheless entered through the same process and cast ballots in turn. On a day of deep political division, the line placed disagreement inside a shared civic procedure.