The Quality Assurance Office of the College of Law and Politics at the University of Human Development convened a seminar for Assistant Professor Dr Kurdistan Salim Saeed on the ongoing situation regarding the selection of a new president for Iraq by the Iraqi Parliament. It was titled ‘The Position of President of the Republic in Iraq: Between Constitutional Text and Political Reality’ and took place in the Seminar Hall.

Iraq has a power-sharing political system among its three major components: the Shia Arabs, the Sunni Arabs, and the Kurds. Regular parliamentary elections are held, and votes matter, but it is ultimately the power-sharing mechanisms and the country's constitution that govern the division of power and the distribution of posts among the winning parties.

Dr Saeed provided a background on the new system following the overthrow of Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein in 2003 and presented a historical overview of the previous presidents and the current candidates for the position. She highlighted that the power of Iraq's president is nominal, as outlined in the constitution, and the position is assigned to the Kurds based on informal understandings and the power dynamics in the country. However, the president, by virtue of his position, can exert broader influence on the political process in Iraq and play an essential role in addressing various issues, based on his personal traits and characteristics, as well as his relationships with political forces and influential individuals both inside and outside the country.

A number of teachers and students attended the seminar and contributed with their comments and questions.