Iraq has a new president.
Parliament voted on Saturday to elect Nizar Amidi as the country’s President. He is a member of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK).
Amidi takes over from Abdul Latif Jamal Rashid, who decided not to run for a second term earlier the same day.
Before this, Amidi served as Minister of Environment, a role he left in November 2024.
In Iraq, the presidency is usually held by a Kurdish politician, and this tradition continues with his appointment.
However, the process wasn’t smooth. The Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP), the other major Kurdish party, rejected how the election was carried out. They called it unlawful and said it didn’t follow proper parliamentary procedures. Because of that, they are continuing to boycott parliament.
So while Iraq now has a new president, political tensions—especially between the main Kurdish parties—are still very much in play.
