Iraqi Parliament Fails to Elect President Amid Clashes
Iraq's parliament failed to elect a new president on Thursday after neither of the two main candidates secured a majority in a chaotic session that saw lawmakers trade blows and at least one reported injury.
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According to parliament's press office, 311 out of 329 lawmakers were present in today's session, and 137 voted for Mahmoud al-Mashhadani, the eldest deputy, while 158 voted for Salem al-Issawi, short of the 165 votes needed by either candidate.
In mid-November, the Supreme Court, Iraq's highest judicial body, revoked the mandate of the previous speaker, influential Sunni politician Mohamed al-Halbousi, after a lawmaker filed a complaint alleging he had "forged" a document.
Lawmakers have since failed to elect a new speaker due to political wrangling and, in particular, divisions among major Sunni parties.
Without an election in the first round, many lawmakers did not return for a second vote, with local media sharing videos of a brief scuffle between some of them, and reports of at least one person injured, before the session was adjourned.
In the Shiite-majority country, parliament is dominated by a coalition of pro-Iran Shiite parties.
Political life in Iraq, a multi-ethnic and multi-confessional country, is governed by a power-sharing system among the different communities: the largely ceremonial post of president is traditionally occupied by a Kurd, the prime minister is a Shiite, while the Sunni community is represented by the parliament speaker.
Elections and appointments to top posts are often arduous processes that can take several months, bogged down by protracted negotiations and hard-to-reach agreements.
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