Campaign posters cover the roadsides in Baghdad ahead of elections on December 18 in which Iraqis will select councils in more than a dozen provinces. It's the first election of its kind in a decade. Experts have warned that the councils would only serve to further entrench the power of ruling parties in a country rich in oil but riven by corruption. Many candidate posters have been torn down in a sign of growing political disillusionment. "Nothing will change, just like the last election" says Mustafa Ali, a 28-year-old who won't be voting. But his view isn't universal among Iraqis, of whom some 17 million are eligible to vote. "We must go and vote" urges Karrar Karim, "I have a lot of hope for the upcoming elections." IMAGES AND SOUNDBITES