Baghdad: Parliamentary and political circles discussed on Tuesday a near-final agreement to set January 26 as the date for the session to vote on the candidates for the presidency.

According to National Iraqi News Agency, the Legal Department of the General Secretariat of the Council of Representatives had previously begun reviewing the files of candidates applying for the position. The Presidency of the Council of Representatives announced a list of 15 candidates who met the legal requirements for candidacy for the position of President of the Republic of Iraq, as stipulated in Article (1) of Law No. (8) of 2012, the Law on Provisions for Candidacy for the Position of President of the Republic.

The list includes Shwan Hawiz Fariq Namiq, Ahmed Abdullah Tawfiq Ahmed, Hussein Taha Hassan Mohammed Sinjari, Najm al-Din Abdul Karim Hama Karim Nasrallah, Asu Faridun Ali, Saman Ali Ismail Shali, Sabah Saleh Saeed, Abdullah Mohammed Ali Thahir, Abdul Latif Mohammed Jamal Rashid Sheikh Mohammed, Iqbal Abdullah Amin Haliwi, Nizar Mohammed Saeed Mohammed Kanji, Sardar Abdullah Mahmoud Tayms, Fouad Mohammed Hussein Baki, Muthanna Amin Nader, and Nawzad Hadi Mawloud.

These candidates have been vetted to ensure they meet all legal criteria necessary for the candidacy, paving the way for an organized electoral process. The decision to hold the election session in January marks a step forward in Iraq’s ongoing political process.