Iraq’s top court is set to address a lawsuit on Wednesday filed by the Turkmen Front against the election of Kirkuk’s governor and local government.

The lawsuit was filed by the Turkmen Front on Wednesday, in which they claim that the election of the local cabinet without their presence in the meeting is illegal.

“The Federal Supreme Court has set Wednesday as the date to look into the lawsuit,” Turkmen Front spokesperson Mohammed Sam’an told The New Region.

Political leaders from Kirkuk held a late-night meeting earlier this month at the Al-Rashid Hotel in Baghdad to elect a new governor and council president. 

The session, attended by three Arab members, one Babylon Movement member, and five Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK), was initially scheduled for 8 pm, but was delayed due to last-minute discussions at the home of former Iraqi Parliament Speaker Mohammed al-Halbousi.

During the meeting, attended by only nine members of the council, PUK candidate Rebwar Taha was elected for governor, and Arab Bloc member Mohammed Hafiz was elected for council president. 

The Turkmen community in the province arranged a large scale protest in opposition to the decisions made by the nine members of the council last week.

The Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP), another party that was not present in the meeting, voiced concerns over the circumstances in which Kirkuk’s governor and local cabinet were elected, deeming it as contrary to the law.

“What happened on October 10 in Baghdad’s Al-Rashid Hotel in electing governor and the local government of Kirkuk without informing all parties and in the absence of Turkmen representatives, some Arab representatives, and the KDP, is illegal and has issues,” the party’s spokesperson said.

The Sovereignty Party in Kirkuk issued a statement last Sunday asserting the right of Kirkuk's Arabs to the governor's position following the recent local election results, in which the party secured four out of the six seats won by the Arab bloc. 

Despite an agreement to boycott the local government formation session, some party members attended.

The party claimed that the new local government was formed in violation of the law and regulations, lacking legal legitimacy due to several breaches, including the failure to submit a written request to the senior council member and the session being held outside the province without security justification.