Iraq election commission denies exclusion of Halbousi from November vote

BAGHDAD — Iraq’s Independent High Electoral Commission on Sunday denied reports that Mohamed al-Halbousi, head of the Taqaddum Party, had been barred from running in the Nov. 11, 2025 parliamentary elections after a complaint filed by Azm Alliance leader Muthanna al-Samarrai.

“Some pages circulated a decision attributed to the Board of Commissioners regarding a complaint from Muthanna al-Samarrai against Mohamed al-Halbousi. We confirm that this decision is forged until this moment. The complaint has not been officially resolved, and any document stating otherwise has no basis in truth,” the commission said in a statement. “We ask that news and decisions be taken exclusively from the official website of the commission.”

Social media users and several local outlets had circulated what they claimed was an official document, alleging that the board had approved minutes of a committee meeting under ministerial order 85, decision No. 14. The text said the decision excluded candidate Mohamed Rikan al-Halbousi for “a forgery offense affecting trust,” based on a complaint filed by Muthanna Abdul-Samad al-Samarrai.

The commission did, however, confirm Sunday that 290 candidates were excluded from the November elections for reasons ranging from accountability and justice measures to criminal restrictions and issues of biography and conduct.

Halbousi, who served as parliament speaker 2018 until his dismissal on Nov. 14, 2023, has faced past legal challenges. Iraq’s Federal Supreme Court removed him from office after a lawmaker accused him of forging a resignation letter. On June 12, 2025, his media office announced that “the Iraqi judiciary acquitted” him of those charges, saying the courts dismissed the complaints and closed the investigation.