ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq - The Kurdistan Democratic Party’s (KDP) parliamentary bloc on Friday said it will not attend the Iraqi parliament’s session to elect the country’s next president, scheduled for Saturday, calling the push to hold the session without a national consensus “a blatant disregard for the essence of national partnership.”

“Proceeding with attempts to convene a session to elect the President of the Republic and impose a fait accompli, without returning to the principles of consensus and partnership, constitutes a blatant disregard for the essence of national partnership and a dangerous retreat from the constitutional understandings,” the KDP’s parliamentary bloc said in a statement.

“We have decided not to participate in tomorrow's session. We emphasize that any step taken in the absence of national consensus will only serve to further complicate the political landscape, pushing it toward an uncertain future,” the bloc added.

The KDP and the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) have yet to agree on a unanimous candidate for the Iraqi presidency, a post traditionally reserved for Kurds, over three months after the legislature held its first session.

President Masoud Barzani, leader of the KDP, earlier in the day said that “the persistence of certain factions within the Coordination Framework in pushing forward with the presidential election, while others deliberately stall the selection of a prime minister, is unacceptable.”

The State of Law Coalition also announced it will be boycotting the Saturday session, citing “fundamental disagreements among the political forces and components of the political process.”

“The State of Law Coalition announces its support for postponing tomorrow's session and its decision not to attend, believing in the necessity of creating a positive atmosphere that ensures responsible outcomes serving the country's interests,” the bloc said.

State of Law Coalition leader Nouri al-Maliki was positioned as the most likely candidate for the premiership following the November elections, but his ambitions were hampered after US President Donald Trump threatened to cut off support for Iraq should he be elected to the office.

The ruling Shiite Coordination Framework has yet to formally withdraw Maliki’s candidacy or announce a new nominee, but the threats from Washington have severely crippled any attempts to move forward with the government formation process.

The Iraqi parliament is constitutionally required to hold a session to elect the president within 30 days of the first session of the new term. The current cycle of the Iraqi legislature began on December 29.

Despite the pushback from KDP, Iraqi parliament speaker Haibat al-Halbousi emphasized in a statement that the session will proceed on Saturday. The statement was released prior to the announcement from Maliki’s party.