Iraqi parliament elects new president after months-long political deadlock

Middle East, News October 14, 2022 , by IRIA No Comments

The Iraqi parliament has elected Abdul Latif Rashid as the country’s new president. Mohammad al-Sudani becomes the new prime minister after the parliamentary elections on October 13, 2022.

Abdul Latif Rashid, a Kurdish politician, would replace his opponent and current president of Iraq, Barham Saleh, as the head of state. Rashid, who is 78 years old, won the elections with more than 160 votes against Saleh, who received a total of 99 votes from the parliament.

As soon as the election results were announced, a Shia parliamentary representative Mohammed al-Sudani was named Prime Minister. He would replace the current caretaker Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhemi. The 52-year-old al-Sudani is a pro-Iranian Shia leader and a seasoned politician.

Iraq has been facing a post-election political deadlock and violent protests for about one year since the elections took place in October 2021. The political deadlock finally came to an end after a power-sharing system between the Kurdish, Shia, and Sunni blocs was achieved. The presidency in Iraq is reserved for Kurdish groups while the premiership falls under Shia blocs. The speaker of parliament is a Sunni.

The political deadlock after the 2021 elections emerged for the seat of prime minister between the Shia bloc. The nomination of the 52-year-old pro-Iranian al-Sudani was rejected by an influential Shia leader and head of the Sadrist Movement, Muqtada al-Sadr. Al-Sadr’s bloc won 73 out of 329 seats in the general elections in October 2021 and emerged as one of the largest groups in terms of parliament seats.

*^{Protesters try to remove concrete barriers to cross the bridge toward the Green Zone area in Baghdad on July 30, 2022. (Image Credit: Ali Abdul Hassan/AP)}*

Thousands of members of the Sadrist Movement rallied in Baghdad on several occasions to protest against the nomination of al-Sudani. In July 2022, hundreds of protesters broke barriers to enter the Green Zone, which houses government buildings as well as foreign missions and embassies. The protesters threw stones while police fired tear gas and rubber bullets.

As the anticipated parliamentary session took place on October 13, the Iraqi parliamentary building was hit by at least nine rockets leaving at least five people injured.

Although no group claimed the responsibility for the rocket attack, it is speculated that the rockets were fired from the Sadrist Movement. This was not the first time that the Iraqi parliament building was hit by rockets. On September 28, three rockets targeted the Green Zone as a session was convened to renew confidence in parliament speaker Mohammed al-Halbousi.

Political history of Rashid and al-Sudani

Both Rashid and al-Sudani are seasoned politicians with a long history in Iraqi politics. Rashid served in several key government positions in Iraq including minister of water resources from 2003 to 2010 and presidential adviser. He started his mainstream political career as the mayor of his hometown, Sulaimaniyah, a major city in the semi-autonomous Kurdish region of northern Iraq. He speaks Kurdish, Arabic, and English.

Al-Sudani came to prominence as an active Shia leader during the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq in 2003. In 2010, he rose through the ranks during the government of former Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki and served as minister of human rights, social affairs, and industry.