Iraq to hold presidential election session next week

Shafaq News– Baghdad

Iraq’s parliament will convene next week to elect the country’s president, ahead of the constitutionally mandated deadline, a parliamentary source told Shafaq News on Thursday.

The source said the session is expected to take place on January 26 or 27, following meetings between the parliament’s presidency and political blocs to arrange the vote. Lawmakers, he added, will hold a closed session on January 25 to discuss security conditions and border protection, attended by the interior and defense ministers as well as senior security commanders.

Under Iraq’s post-2003 political system, the presidency is traditionally held by a Kurdish figure, most often from the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK). Parliament is required to elect a president within 30 days of its first session, with a two-thirds majority needed in the first round or a simple majority in a second round if no candidate prevails. The process moved forward after lawmakers elected Haibet Al-Halbousi as speaker on December 29, 2025.

Earlier this month, the Council of Representatives announced a list of 15 candidates who met the legal requirements to run for the presidency, a number that later rose to 19 after the Federal Supreme Court of Iraq reviewed appeals and reinstated four applicants. Among the prominent contenders are Fuad Hussein, Iraq’s current foreign minister; Nawzad Hadi, backed by the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP); and Nizar Amedi, the sole nominee of the PUK.

Read more: Iraq’s Presidential Race: Kurdish candidates competing for the post