ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq – Iraq’s Sunni National Political Council is set to meet later on Sunday to pick a candidate for the country’s next parliamentary speaker, a post traditionally reserved for the Sunni component. 

The National Political Council, an amalgam of Iraq's Sunni parties, is set to convene at the residence of Azm Alliance leader Muthanna al-Samarrai, aiming "to finalize the selection of one or two candidates for the Speaker position," Iraq's state newspaper reported on Sunday, citing Salah al-Marawi, a member of the Azm Alliance.

Iraq held its sixth parliamentary elections in November, the results of which were submitted to the country's Federal Supreme Court for ratification on Monday, nearly a month after the electoral process. The elections saw nearly 7,750 candidates competing for the legislature's 329 seats.

Modeled after the Shiite Coordination Framework, the National Political Council is an umbrella group of Sunni parties, announced in late November by Sunni leaders from Taqaddum, Azm, the Sovereignty Alliance, Hasm al-Watani, and the National Masses Party.

Most of the blocs within the council have candidates for the position, the newspaper said, citing Sovereignty Alliance member Salah al-Kubaisi, who added that common ground and understanding between the blocs are "greater" than previous disagreements, according to the state newspaper.

Mohammed al-Halbousi’s Taqaddum Party and its coalitions scored the highest number of seats among the Sunni forces in the recent elections, securing 36 seats.

Concurrent with the Sunnis' efforts to come to an understanding regarding the parliament speaker position, the Coordination Framework is also aiming to finalize the selection of a candidate for the country's prime minister, a post that traditionally goes to the Shiites.