The peaceful transfer of power through elections held every four years, as outlined in the Constitution, is among the most substantial of Iraq’s achievements since 2003.
Since Iraq has a republican and parliamentary political system, as per Article 1 of the Constitution, the legislative authority is the “mother” of the executive authority, the government, with members of parliament elected by direct secret ballot, as stipulated in Article 49 of the Constitution.
The Constitution and Law No. 31 of 2019 (as amended) regarding the Independent High Electoral Commission have set a clear framework for the electoral process that ensures the constitutional and democratic transfer of power in a manner that respects the will of the people and consolidates political stability.
Article 56/Second of the Constitution stipulates that parliamentary elections must be held 45 days before the existing parliament’s term ends. Since the current parliament’s four-year term began on January 9, 2022, the constitutionally mandated date for holding the elections should be November 24, 2025. Thus, setting November 11, 2025, as the date for parliamentary elections constitutes a clear violation of the constitution (Article 56/First), as it has no basis in any constitutional or legal provision.
Article 20 of the Law of the Independent High Electoral Commission allows for challenging the legality of the elections for up to three days from the date the results are announced. The Commission then has seven days to prepare responses to the appeals and submit them to the Judicial Commission for Elections, which must issue a ruling within ten days.
After these dates, the Commission sends the final results to the Federal Supreme Court for ratification, in accordance with Article 93 (Seventh) of the Constitution. Once they are ratified, the Commission notifies the President of the Republic, who, in turn, calls on the newly elected parliament convene through a republican decree issued within 15 days from the date of ratification.
The new parliament convenes. In this first session chaired by the eldest member, parliament elects the Speaker and his two deputies, in accordance with Article 55 of the Constitution. It then proceeds to elect the President of the Republic within 30 days from the date of its first session, as stipulated in Article 72/First(b) of the Constitution. Following his election, the President of the Republic tasks the largest parliamentary bloc with forming the government within 15 days. The prime minister designate is given 30 days to form a cabinet subject to a parliamentary vote of confidence, in accordance with Article 76 of the Constitution.
Adding these timeframes, we find that the formation of a new government could take up to approximately four months from the date the election results are announced. However, the law and constitution stipulate that it is “within” these timeframes that these steps must be taken. That is, these end dates are deadlines but the processes can finish earlier, meaning that the process can proceed faster if there is the political will to do so.
Accordingly, it could take significantly less than four months to form a new government if each phase proceeds swiftly and is completed before the deadline. If the Council of Representatives convenes the day of the presidential decree, and if the Speaker, the President of the Republic, and the Prime Minister are elected and designated within the first few days, the new government could emerge in early January 2026 instead of March of the same year.
Past experiences have shown that constitutional deadlines are often exceeded in the elections of the three key officials: the speaker of parliament, the president, and the prime minister. That is, Iraqi officials have made a habit of violating the Constitution and undermining the democratic spirit of peaceful political transition. This persistent problem can be attributed to the absence of legal consequences for such violations, as the Constitution has no provision on penalizing them, leading to the recurrence in multiple electoral cycles.
According to the above, we hope that these remarks will be taken into account whenever the Constitution is amended in the future, such that these amendments enforce respect for constitutional timeframes and set specific penalties for violating them. In doing so, officials would enhance the stability of the democratic system, uphold the rule of law, and reinforce the principle of peaceful political transfer of power.
