Iraq elects Abdul Latif Rashid as new President after year-long political stalemate

Abdul Latif Rashid on Thursday was elected as the President of the Republic of Iraq following months of negotiations, bargaining, verbal battles, and overt and secret deals, succeeding President Barham Salih.

Rashid received 157 votes against 99 votes for his rival, Saleh in the first round of voting in the Iraqi parliament. Meanwhile, none of the candidates received two-thirds of the votes, which the law of the Council requires as a condition for winning the position. This necessitated a second round of voting, where Rashid received 162 votes against 99.

Following the two voting sessions, Abdul Latif Rashid was sworn in as President of the Republic of Iraq. Rashid is the fourth president of the middle eastern country since the 2003 US invasion of Iraq.

Rashid takes oath on Twitter

The newly appointed President of Iraq took his oath on his official Twitter handle, “I swear by God Almighty, the Great, to perform my legal duties and responsibilities with dedication and sincerity, to preserve Iraq’s independence and sovereignty, to look after the interests of its people, to ensure the safety of its land, sky, water, wealth, and its federal democratic system, and to work to preserve public and private freedoms, and the independence of the judiciary.” 

Rashid’s appointment as the country’s president came after the Kurdistan Democratic Party, led by Masoud Barzani, agreed to withdraw its candidate, Reber Ahmed the Kurdistan Regional Minister of Interior from the presidential race. The development came after the country has been at a political stalemate for almost a year.

Who is the new President of Iraq?

Born in Sulaymaniyah in 1944, Abdul Latif Rashid is considered one of the cadres of the old Kurdish political work in Iraq since the 70s. Rashid worked in the Kurdistan Democratic Party in its beginnings followed by several Kurdish student activities in Europe, informs Siasat Daily.

The new President holds a BA in Civil Engineering from the University of Liverpool, and a PhD in Engineering from the University of Manchester.

According to Siasat Daily, Rashid took over Iraq’s Ministry of Water Resources from 2003 until the end of 2010, and he was appointed Senior Adviser to the President of the Republic of Iraq in December 2010.

Following his appointment, Rashid was congratulated by the former President of the country, Barham Salih, “With affection and respect, I congratulate the elected President of the Republic, Mr Abdul Latif Rashid, wishing him success in his work.”

The former Kurdistan region President of Iraq also extended full support Rashid

The appointment of the new Iraqi President came just days after India had raised concerns regarding the issue at a Security Council meeting on the "situation concerning Iraq”. Raising the issue of increased activities by the infamous terror organization, Daesh (ISIS), India’s Deputy Permanent Representative to the United Nations, R Ravindra had called on Iraq to find an "urgent" end to the political stalemate and urged parties to hold peaceful dialogues to meet people's aspirations and hopes for a safe, secure, and prosperous future for them.