Iraqi Parliament schedules session without presidential vote

Shafaq News- Baghdad

Iraq’s Council of Representatives published on Saturday the agenda for its February 9 session without including a vote to elect a president, underscoring the ongoing political deadlock.

Parliament said, in a statement, that the seventh session of the current term will convene at 11:00 a.m. local time and will include the swearing-in of replacement lawmakers and a vote to form permanent parliamentary committees.

The absence of a presidential vote comes despite constitutional requirements for parliament to elect a president within one month of its first session, a deadline that expired on January 28, amid continued uncertainty over whether official holidays count toward the time limit. Under Iraq’s power-sharing system, the presidency is held by a Kurd, the prime ministership by a Shiite, and the speakership by a Sunni Arab.

Previous attempts to elect a president failed due to disputes between the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) and the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK), the two main Kurdish parties, which have not agreed on a joint nominee, repeatedly preventing the quorum required for a vote. On February 1, lawmaker Ahmed Al-Dalfi of the Reconstruction and Development (Al-Imar Wa Al-Tanmiya) Alliance, led by caretaker Prime Minister Mohammed Shia Al-Sudani, indicated to Shafaq News that Kurdish parties had been given one week to resolve differences and present a candidate.

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