An Iraqi parliament session intended to elect a new president on Monday was postponed to Tuesday due to lack of quorum.
Instead, the election session evolved into fierce dispute between the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK), which supports Barham Salih, as a candidate for the presidency, and the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP), which backs the candidacy of Fuad Hussein.
There are currently seven candidates running for the presidency.
Blocs and alliances are still, however, torn over who to back for the post.
In an attempt to win the support of Baghdad’s main alliances and blocs, several Kurdish high-ranking delegations headed to the Iraqi capital in the past couple of days to hold talks with officials about the presidential elections.
An important meeting was held Monday between a delegation from the KDP, headed by the party’s Vice President Nechirvan Barzani and son of late President Jalal Talabani, Bafel, as they seek to reach consensus over a single Kurdish candidate.
Iraqi deputies are, meanwhile, facing difficulties in choosing between Salih and Hussein.
They noted that Salih did not get involved in Kurdistan’s referendum last year to gain independence from Iraq.
Even though he voted for in favor of independence, he expressed reservations over the vote.
On the other side of the divide, deputies might opt for the Shi’ite candidate, Hussein, who is supported by prominent Shi’ite forces.
Meanwhile, several Kurdish parties have blamed former President of the Kurdistan Region and current KDP leader Masoud Barzani for the negative repercussions that resulted from the failed referendum.
A leading Kurdish official told Asharq Al-Awsat on condition of anonymity that Barzani wants to win the presidential seat for his party to prove to both, the Kurds and Baghdad, that he remains the sole Kurdish player, despite his isolation following the failed independence bid.
