ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - The Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) said Friday it will boycott Saturday’s parliamentary session to elect Iraq’s next president, citing a lack of political consensus.
“We have decided not to participate in tomorrow's session,” the KDP bloc in the Iraqi parliament said in a statement. The presidential election is scheduled to take place during Saturday’s session.
Under Iraq’s informal power-sharing system, the presidency is allocated to the Kurds, the parliamentary speakership to Sunni Arabs, and the premiership to Shiite parties. However, the constitutional deadline to elect a president has already passed, as the two main Kurdish parties, the KDP and the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK), have yet to agree on a joint candidate. The PUK has nominated Nizar Amedi, while the KDP has put forward Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein.
The KDP’s statement added that the “attempt” to convene the session and elect the president “imposes a fait accompli” and “constitutes a blatant disregard for the essence of national partnership and a dangerous retreat from the constitutional understandings upon which the country's political process was built.”
The party added that the presidency and the premiership “are inseparable national matters” and must be “addressed as a single, integrated package within a framework of genuine consensus and comprehensive, serious dialogue.”
Shortly after the KDP’s announcement, former prime minister Nouri al-Maliki’s State of Law coalition also said it would not attend the session, backing a postponement and citing “the necessity of preparing a positive atmosphere that ensures responsible outcomes serving the interests of the country,” according to Maliki’s adviser Hisham al-Rikabi.
The KDP holds 26 seats in the parliament, and the State of Law has 29.
Maliki was positioned as the leading candidate for the premiership after being nominated by the ruling Shiite Coordination Framework following the November elections. However, US President Donald Trump has threatened to cut off support for Iraq if he is appointed.
KDP leader President Masoud Barzani said in a Friday post on X that pushing ahead with the presidential vote “while others deliberately stall the selection” of a prime minister is “unacceptable.”
The decision to hold Saturday’s session followed a meeting last Sunday between parliamentary leaders and heads of political blocs, who stressed the need to end the “political deadlock,” according to a statement from the legislature. The Shiite Coordination Framework has called for accelerating the election process and urged political parties to resolve their differences.
Deputy Speaker of the Iraqi parliament Farhad Atroushi, a KDP member, also voiced his “disapproval” of the session’s agenda, citing “the absence of national and political consensus regarding electoral entitlements.”
He urged “our partners among the political leaders to allow for further understanding and serious dialogue” to “transcend differences and reach a national consensus on a presidential candidate who enjoys broad national acceptance, far from the policy of imposing a fait accompli.”
On Saturday, President Masoud Barzani warned that rushing to elect a president could lead to “counterproductive” results and “deeper divisions,” stressing the need for further consultations among political forces.
Iraq held legislative elections in early November. In late December, parliament elected its speaker and two deputies. Under Iraq’s constitution, lawmakers must elect a president within 30 days of forming parliamentary leadership, in a session requiring a two-thirds quorum - 220 out of 329 members - to convene.
After a president is elected - either by a two-thirds majority in the first round or a simple majority in a runoff - the president must, within 15 days of being sworn in, task the prime minister nominee from the largest parliamentary bloc with forming a government.
“We have decided not to participate in tomorrow's session,” the KDP bloc in the Iraqi parliament said in a statement. The presidential election is scheduled to take place during Saturday’s session.
Under Iraq’s informal power-sharing system, the presidency is allocated to the Kurds, the parliamentary speakership to Sunni Arabs, and the premiership to Shiite parties. However, the constitutional deadline to elect a president has already passed, as the two main Kurdish parties, the KDP and the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK), have yet to agree on a joint candidate. The PUK has nominated Nizar Amedi, while the KDP has put forward Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein.
The KDP’s statement added that the “attempt” to convene the session and elect the president “imposes a fait accompli” and “constitutes a blatant disregard for the essence of national partnership and a dangerous retreat from the constitutional understandings upon which the country's political process was built.”
The party added that the presidency and the premiership “are inseparable national matters” and must be “addressed as a single, integrated package within a framework of genuine consensus and comprehensive, serious dialogue.”
Shortly after the KDP’s announcement, former prime minister Nouri al-Maliki’s State of Law coalition also said it would not attend the session, backing a postponement and citing “the necessity of preparing a positive atmosphere that ensures responsible outcomes serving the interests of the country,” according to Maliki’s adviser Hisham al-Rikabi.
The KDP holds 26 seats in the parliament, and the State of Law has 29.
Maliki was positioned as the leading candidate for the premiership after being nominated by the ruling Shiite Coordination Framework following the November elections. However, US President Donald Trump has threatened to cut off support for Iraq if he is appointed.
KDP leader President Masoud Barzani said in a Friday post on X that pushing ahead with the presidential vote “while others deliberately stall the selection” of a prime minister is “unacceptable.”
The decision to hold Saturday’s session followed a meeting last Sunday between parliamentary leaders and heads of political blocs, who stressed the need to end the “political deadlock,” according to a statement from the legislature. The Shiite Coordination Framework has called for accelerating the election process and urged political parties to resolve their differences.
Deputy Speaker of the Iraqi parliament Farhad Atroushi, a KDP member, also voiced his “disapproval” of the session’s agenda, citing “the absence of national and political consensus regarding electoral entitlements.”
He urged “our partners among the political leaders to allow for further understanding and serious dialogue” to “transcend differences and reach a national consensus on a presidential candidate who enjoys broad national acceptance, far from the policy of imposing a fait accompli.”
On Saturday, President Masoud Barzani warned that rushing to elect a president could lead to “counterproductive” results and “deeper divisions,” stressing the need for further consultations among political forces.
Iraq held legislative elections in early November. In late December, parliament elected its speaker and two deputies. Under Iraq’s constitution, lawmakers must elect a president within 30 days of forming parliamentary leadership, in a session requiring a two-thirds quorum - 220 out of 329 members - to convene.
After a president is elected - either by a two-thirds majority in the first round or a simple majority in a runoff - the president must, within 15 days of being sworn in, task the prime minister nominee from the largest parliamentary bloc with forming a government.
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