BAGHDAD -- More than 44 candidates have registered to run in Iraq's presidential election, the Iraqi parliament announced on Monday after the nomination period closed in the afternoon.

Among the prominent contenders are Fuad Hussein, nominated by the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP), and Nizar Amedi of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK), the official Iraqi News Agency quoted Safwan al-Gargari, secretary-general of the Iraqi parliament, as saying.

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The finalists will be announced following the vetting process, said al-Gargari.

While Iraq's constitution formally guarantees all qualified citizens the right to seek the presidency, top state positions are in practice allocated through an ethno-sectarian quota system. Established after the 2003 US-led invasion, the power-sharing arrangement reserves the presidency for a Kurd, the parliamentary speakership for a Sunni Muslim, and the prime ministership for a Shiite Muslim.

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The move to elect a new president follows the successful selection of Iraq's parliamentary leadership at sessions held on Dec 29 and 30, 2025.

Under Iraq's constitution, parliament must elect a president within 30 days of its first session. The president then has 15 days to designate the nominee of the largest parliamentary bloc to form a new cabinet, which must be presented to parliament for a confidence vote within 30 days.