There are distinct signs of progress: Downtown Baghdad is bustling, and violence in the capital is at its lowest level in nearly a decade. Reconstruction of Iraq's cities and towns is now joining oil production as one of the biggest drivers of the economy. In Mosul, which was under the brutal control of ISIS for several years until the militant group was defeated last summer, women have shed their Islamist-imposed burqas, and they now freely mingle and bargain with men in marketplaces. But 15 years of war, sectarian violence, terrorism, and poor leadership have left deep scars on Iraq and its population of 37.2 million people. Corruption is rampant, nearly a quarter of Iraqis are in poverty, and 10 percent remain displaced from their homes. In Ramadi, thousands of people live in tents next to the rubble of their houses. Many Iraqis are dispirited, angry, and deeply cynical about their government. "Think of the young man sitting around with no money, no home, and no job," says regional Gov. Ibrahim al-Janabi. "It seems impossible he's not going to start looking for someone to blame." Turnout in the May 12 election was just 44 percent, the lowest it has been in the four elections since 2003.

Who won that election?

Politics in Iraq is fragmented -- nearly 7,000 candidates from 87 parties ran for 329 seats in the parliament -- but it still produced a clear winner: Muqtada al-Sadr, the firebrand cleric who once led the Shiites' Mahdi Army against U.S. coalition forces. Formerly close to Iran, he has repositioned himself as a nationalist who wants to rid Iraq of both Iranian and U.S. meddling.