Taqadum denies agreement on consensus candidate for Iraqi Parliament Speaker

Shafaq News/  The Taqadum Party, led by Mohammad al-Halbousi, denied on Monday any agreement with other parties regarding a consensus candidate for the position of Parliament Speaker following al-Halbousi's removal from the role by a court ruling.

A senior Taqadum official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, told Shafaq News that "there is no political agreement with the Sadiqoun bloc (of Asai'b Ahl Al-Haq or the Coordination Framework on a consensus candidate for the Speaker of the House of Representatives." The official also dismissed rumors about nominating MP Talal al-Zobaie as a consensus candidate, stating that "MP Mahmoud al-Mashhadani remains the Taqadum Party's candidate, supported by some political blocs within the Coordination Framework."

Despite more than eight months having passed, Sunni political factions have yet to agree on a replacement for Parliament Speaker Mohammad al-Halbousi. The issue has led to five failed attempts to resolve the matter, with divisions persisting between support for al-Mashhadani and Salem al-Issawi, representing other Sunni factions (al-Siyada and the al-Azm and al-Hasm alliances.)

Recently, the al-Azm Alliance, led by Muthanna al-Samarrai, warned Shia forces against obstructing the election of a new Parliament Speaker. Alliance leader Haidar al-Mulla criticized the notion of achieving Sunni-Sunni consensus as "a tactic to stall the election process," asserting that such consensus has never been reached in the selection of any of the three key presidential roles in Iraq.