Half of Iraq's registered voters turned out for peaceful provincial elections this weekend, the election commission said Sunday. Residents of Iraq's Ramadi province cast their votes this weekend during provincial elections. The turnout of 7.5 million voters starkly contrasted with elections in 2005, when the violence and intimidation of al Qaeda in Iraq kept voters away from the polls and only 2 percent of eligible voters participated. Faraj al-Haidari, the head of the Independent High Electoral Commission, called the turnout this year very high for provincial elections in any country. Fifty-one percent of the 14.9 million registered voters cast ballots. Al-Haidari called the weekend voting the most important elections in the history of Iraq since the fall of Saddam Hussein. Voting was held in 14 of Iraq's 18 provinces. The highest turnout -- 65 percent -- was in the Salaheddin province in northern Iraq, the commission said. The lowest -- 40 percent -- was in Anbar, the Sunni heartland west of Baghdad. The sprawling desert area was dominated in 2005 by al Qaeda in Iraq. Preliminary results from the electoral commission are expected within five days. Final numbers are due at the end of February. CNN's Arwa Damon, who toured polling stations with U.N. observers, said she noticed an increased sense of awareness and optimism among voters, who said they felt their participation