Iraqi prime minister-designate faces pressure on Cabinet choices
Political pressure on the prime minister-designate, Mohammed Tawfiq Allawi, could bring him down before he even forms a government.
BAGHDAD — There are multiple challenges keeping Mohammed Tawfiq Allawi, recently named Iraq's prime minister-designate, from forming the government of independent technocrats that he pledged. The first major hurdle is that some political blocs want to continue to hold onto their current level of representation in the Cabinet.
Under the constitution, Allawi is required within 30 days to form a government and go to parliament to obtain a vote of confidence with an absolute majority of at least 165 out of 329 parliament members.
The Fatah and Sairoon Shiite blocs are the only ones supporting Allawi. They have 47 and 51 parliament members, respectively. Based on that, the new government needs a minimum of 67 additional votes to win a vote of confidence. Such a number can only be secured with the participation of the Kurdish and Sunni blocs. This is true particularly since some of the Shiite blocs, such as former Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi's al-Nasr bloc, refused to name Allawi to form a government.
A source familiar with the talks to form a government told Al-Monitor that Allawi is finding it difficult to convince the Kurdish parties in particular to give up their current share of positions in the new government.
