Baghdad ? Iraqis on Sunday defied insurgents attempting to intimidate voters taking part in elections that will determine whether their country can overcome deep sectarian divides as U.S. forces prepare to leave.

The conclusion of the vote, however, did not spell an immediate end to political uncertainty. It could be days until results come in and with the fractured nature of Iraqi politics, it could take months to form a government.

Sunnis and Shiites seemed united in one way Sunday — defiance in the face of violence. Many came out of polling booths waving fingers dipped in purple ink in a now-iconic image synonymous with Iraq’s democracy.

It was an election day that demonstrated starkly how far the country has come since the last nationwide parliamentary vote in December 2005.

Instead of unified sectarian parties playing strictly to their Shiite, Sunni and Kurdish voters, the political blocs made at least some effort to cross over into other sects. Whereas only party names were known in the 2005 ballot — in order to protect candidates from assassination — this time cities were plastered with candidate posters as Iraqis voted for individual people.

Still the violence served as a reminder of the insurgency’s persistence and adaptability. Insurgents used rockets, mortars and explosive-filled plastic bottles hidden in trash to terrorize voters on their way to the polls. The attacks killed 36 people, almost all of them in Baghdad.