Wednesday, September 19, 2018 6:15:56 PM
Kurds Nominate Barham Salih for Iraqi Presidency

A prominent political party in the semi-autonomous Kurdistan region of northern Iraq nominated Barham Salih on Wednesday for the presidency post, putting the country one step closer to forming a government after months of political stagnation.

Since 2003, power in the war-torn country has been shared among Iraq's three largest components. The prime minister is a Shiite Arab, the speaker of parliament a Sunni Arab and the president a Kurd.

The Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) selected Mr Salih, the former prime minister for the Kurdish regional government (KRG) who left the party last year to campaign against corruption, as their sole candidate for the top post after a ballot of members.

Mr Salih defeated Latif Rashid ad Moahmmed Sabir, winning the internal party election by 26 votes, PUK spokesman Saadi Ahmed said. He added that Mr Salih would maintain his place as the head of Coalition for Democracy and Justice (CDJ) party he founded after leaving the PUK but would also return to his former party in his previous post as deputy secretary-general.

Mr Salih's background will enable him to become a key player in uniting Iraqis, experts said.

“His diplomatic experience and democratic credentials would help navigate difficult issues between Kurds and Baghdad but also among regional players,” a fellow at the European Council on Foreign Relations, Asli Aydintasbas said.

Mr Salih can and will be a key player in bringing all Iraqi’s together, working to build a better future for all Iraqis and helping Iraq rebuild after four difficult years, Ranj Talabany, a PUK official said.

The politician left the PUK and was elected in January as the head of the newly-founded CDJ where he vowed to combat corruption.

Mr Salih founded the American University of Iraq in 2007 and is also a former Iraqi deputy prime minister.

The position of president has been held by members of the PUK, Jalal Talabani and current president  , since the removal of former dictator Saddam Hussein in 2003.

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