Iraqi ruling bloc moves to select Al-Maliki for next PM

Shafaq News– Baghdad

The Shiite Coordination Framework (CF), Iraq's largest parliamentary bloc, will meet on January 19 to nominate former Prime Minister Nouri Al-Maliki as the next premier, a political source confirmed to Shafaq News on Sunday.

According to the source, the alliance will also allocate cabinet portfolios, with the possibility of expanding the number of ministries. The current cabinet comprises 22 ministries, though the ministries of Culture and Tourism and Antiquities could be merged. One ministry, he added, will remain under the framework, while another will be assigned to the National Political Council (NPC), an alliance representing Sunni forces that won seats in the Iraqi parliamentary elections.

“The framework is expected to hold 12 to 14 ministries in the next government,” the source concluded.

Another source had earlier indicated to Shafaq News that divisions over a “controversial” nominee led to the cancellation of a planned framework meeting, initially scheduled for yesterday. While the individual was not named, political sources previously noted that the dispute centers on the potential return of Al-Maliki.

The debate unfolds as Al-Maliki’s State of Law Coalition, which secured 29 seats in the recent parliamentary elections, positions him as a leading contender within the CF. In parallel, caretaker Prime Minister Mohammed Shia Al-Sudani, whose Reconstruction and Development (Al-Ima’ar wal Tanmiya) Coalition won 46 seats, withdrew from seeking a second term.

Under Iraq’s post-2003 power-sharing system, the presidency is held by a Kurd, the premiership by a Shiite Arab, and the speakership of parliament by a Sunni Arab. CF-aligned forces control around 180 of the 329 seats in parliament, giving the alliance decisive influence over the formation of the next government.

Read more: Nouri Al-Maliki: A name that still divides and tests the politics of memory