ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq - Iraq’s National Political Council, an umbrella group of Sunni parties, is set to convene on Sunday to elect a Speaker of Parliament. If no agreement is reached, the decision will be made by Kurdish and Shiite lawmakers, a senior Sunni figure told The New Region on Saturday.

Haider al-Mulla, a senior figure in the Azm Alliance, stated that the meeting will be held a day before the first session of the new parliament on Monday, “to settle the position of Speaker of Parliament,” a position traditionally reserved for Sunnis.

“The meeting is a final attempt to settle the speakership and emerge with the Council’s candidate for the position,” Mulla said, noting that if no agreement is made, the council will proceed with more than one candidate, “leaving the matter to [Shiite] Coordination Framework lawmakers and the Kurdish forces.”

The Sunni candidates still in the running for the position are Taqadum Party leader Mohammed al-Halbousi and Azm Alliance leader Muthanna al-Samarrai, according to Sovereignty Alliance member Muhannad al-Khazraji.

The Council has been struggling with electing a candidate due to “both Samarrai and Halbousi insisting on their respective candidacies,” Khazraji told The New Region, adding that the Coordination Framework has not “vetoed” any potential nominee.

Al-Hal Party leader Jamal al-Karbouli hinted at the possibility of an “upheaval and split within the Taqadum Party” in a post on X.

Mahmoud al-Qaisi, a former MP of Azm Alliance,  in post on X on Saturday stated: “The hammer today will be in the hands of the leader of Azm [Samarrai], which is a merit based on objective criteria and a responsible vision,” concluding the post with “Samarrai as Speaker.”

With the Council’s inability to agree on a candidate despite ongoing talks, and “one leader insisting on treating the position as a personal prize and entitlement,” the constitutional process will be the deciding factor, Mulla argued.

Earlier on Saturday, the Iraqi parliament's media office announced the agenda for its first session, which includes the selection of the Speaker and their two deputies.

Mohammed al-Halbousi’s Taqadum Party and its coalitions scored the highest number of seats among the Sunni forces in the latest parliamentary elections held in November.