Election workers begin counting ballots after polls closed at 6 p.m. in Iraq’s 2025 parliamentary elections.
Judicial council outlines constitutional deadlines for forming Iraq’s next government
BAGHDAD — Iraq’s Supreme Judicial Council on Sunday set out the constitutional timetable for forming the next government following the Federal Supreme Court’s ratification of the final results of the 2025 parliamentary elections.
In a statement, the council said the deadlines begin from Dec. 14, 2025, the date the Federal Supreme Court certified the results. It said the new Council of Representatives must elect its speaker and two deputies within 15 days, setting a deadline of Dec. 29, 2025. The first session of parliament is expected within that period.
The council said political forces must then elect a president of the republic within 30 days of the first parliamentary session. If the first session is held on Dec. 29, the deadline to elect the president would be Jan. 28, 2026. The president must then name a prime minister-designate within 15 days of being elected, which would set a deadline of Feb. 12, 2026, if the presidency vote takes place on Jan. 28.
The council’s announcement followed the Federal Supreme Court’s decision issued Sunday ratifying the election results. In its statement, the court said, “The Federal Supreme Court ratified today, Sunday, the final results of the general elections for membership of the Council of Representatives.”
The court said it held a closed session on Sunday, chaired by its president, Judge Mundhir Ibrahim Hussein, and attended by all members, to review the results submitted by the Independent High Electoral Commission. After deliberations, it concluded the election process “fulfilled its constitutional and legal requirements.”
The ruling, issued under No. (235 / Federal / 2025), was described by the court as “final and binding on all authorities” under the Iraqi Constitution and the Federal Supreme Court Law.
The ratification came after the electoral appeals process was completed earlier this month. On Dec. 7, the Supreme Judicial Council said the electoral judicial panel had finished ruling on all 853 appeals filed against the results of the Nov. 11 parliamentary elections.
The Nov. 11 vote was Iraq’s sixth parliamentary election since 2003 and was held in general and special voting rounds across the country’s 18 constituencies. According to IHEC, Shiite lists won 187 seats, Sunni lists secured 77 and Kurdish lists took 56.