Vice President of Iraq

First Vice President of Iraq
Official emblem
Incumbent Tariq Al-Hashimi since 31 May 2011
Style	His Excellency
Appointer	Parliamentary vote
Term length	Four years, renewable once
Formation	July 14, 1958

Second Vice President of Iraq
Official emblem
Incumbent Khodair al-Khozaei since 31 May 2011
Style	His Excellency
Appointer	Parliamentary vote
Term length	Four years, renewable once
Formation	July 14, 1958

As currently constituted, the state of Iraq has two vice presidents or deputy presidents. The office of Vice President is largely ceremonial but prestigious. The Constitution of Iraq, in its "Transitional Guidelines," creates a three-member Presidency (or Presidential) Council, consisting of the President of the Republic and two vice (or deputy) presidents, who must act in unison. The Presidency Council has three members to accommodate Iraq's three largest groups: Sunni Muslim Arabs, Shiite Muslim Arabs, and (mostly Sunni) Kurds. As a unit, the Presidency Council is meant to symbolize the unity of the nation. This arrangement is required by the constitution to continue until the Council of Representatives, enters its second set of sessions. At this point, the Presidency Council would be replaced by a solitary President of the Republic, who would also have one deputy. In any case, the Presidency is appointed by the Council of Representatives.

This three-member arrangement is a hold-over from the Iraqi interim government and the Iraqi Transitional Government.

On 13 May 2011, three vice-presidents were elected.

Vice-Presidents in the former regime

The former regime of Saddam Hussein also used the office of Vice President. Saddam himself held the title to 1979, when he established complete dominance over the state. Hardan al-Tikriti (1969–1970), Salih Mahdi Ammash and Taha Muhie-eldin Marouf also served as Vice-Presidents. The most recent Baathist to hold the office was Taha Yassin Ramadan, from 1991 to 2003.

Vice-Presidents in the new Iraq

Name	Picture	Born-Died	Took Office	Left Office	Political Party
Ibrahim al-Jaafari		1947–	1 June 2004	7 April 2005	Islamic Da'awa Party
Rowsch Shaways		1947–	1 June 2004	7 April 2005	Kurdistan Democratic Party
Adil Abdul-Mahdi		1942–	6 April 2005	31 May 2011	Islamic Supreme Council of Iraq
Ghazi al-Yawar		1942–	6 April 2005	22 April 2006
Tariq Al-Hashimi		1942–	22 April 2006	Present	Iraqi Islamic Party
Khodair al-Khozaei		1947–	13 May 2011	Present	Islamic Supreme Council of Iraq

See also

Iraq

This article is part of the series: Politics and government of Iraq

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• List of current Vice Presidents