ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq - Iraq's Sunni umbrella group, the National Political Council, had a scheduled meeting postponed on Thursday, coming as speculation grows regarding the bloc's choice of the next parliamentary speaker, a role reserved for a member of the country's Sunni component under the unwritten norms of the federal system.

The meeting, which was scheduled to take place later on Thursday, was delayed due to logistical and technical reasons, according to Salah al-Marawi, a member of the Azm Alliance. He told The New Region that the meeting will now be held early next week at the home of Defense Minister Thabet al-Abbasi, who leads the Hasm Alliance.

Marawi said the meeting will be important for deciding the Sunni blocs’ position on the next speaker of parliament. He said the race is currently limited to two main figures: former speaker Mohammed al-Halbousi and Azm Alliance leader Muthanna al-Samarrai.

He added that the blocs prefer to agree on a single candidate, but this remains difficult. The more likely option, he said, is to put forward two candidates, leaving the final decision to lawmakers and to political deals between blocs.

An informed source told The New Region on Monday that Samarrai is the most likely candidate for the position, with Ghanem al-Aifan, a top official in the Azm Alliance, concurring.

Earlier on Thursday, Azm Alliance member Oraz al-Mashhadani said the Sunni political council had planned to hold the meeting at Abbasi’s home with all major leaders present.

Speaking to The New Region, Mashhadani said the meeting was expected to finalize the list of candidates for the speakership and would likely result in two nominees.

He said al-Samarrai has already confirmed his candidacy, while the Taqaddum party has yet to finalize its nominee. Mashhadani said Halbousi may propose an alternative candidate after receiving a message from Coordination Framework forces indicating there is a “veto” against him. He said Halbousi was asked to nominate Mohammed Tamim or another Taqaddum figure instead.

Mashhadani also said that during a previous meeting, Halbousi agreed to support Samarrai for speaker in exchange for gaining control of all six cabinet posts allocated to the Sunni bloc. He said other political forces, especially the Jamahir Party, rejected the proposal.

He added that the postponed meeting is expected to be tense but decisive in shaping the final list of candidates for the parliament speakership.

Sunni political leaders said previously that discussions within the National Political Council remain focused on protecting the political rights and entitlements of the Sunni component, rather than on dividing positions or naming candidates for parliament speaker.

Several council members told The New Region that no agreement has yet been reached on the distribution of ministries or senior post, and that no formal veto has been placed on any potential speaker candidate. They said negotiations are still ongoing and will continue until the Federal Supreme Court ratifies the election results.

Sunni parties hold 77 of the parliament’s 329 seats, led by the Taqadum Party with 33 seats, followed by the Azm Alliance with 17 seats, the Sovereignty Alliance with 11, the Hasm Alliance with 8, and the National Masses Party with 3.

Political figures said upcoming talks will also address Sunni entitlements in government positions, including ministries, independent commissions, and senior state posts, but stressed that final decisions will be made through further negotiations among bloc leaders after the election results are officially approved.