Iraq’s race for its next presidency has drawn an unusually large field of contenders, with 44 candidates formally submitting their applications, the Speaker of Parliament Haibat al-Halbousi announced on Monday. The statement, released via the state news agency INA, confirmed that the nomination period would close later that same day.

Al-Halbousi’s announcement comes as the country moves through the constitutional process following its November 11 parliamentary elections, the sixth national vote held since the U.S.-led invasion in 2003.

Under Iraq’s political system, it is the members of parliament—not the voting public—who elect the country’s president and grant confidence to the incoming government, a process now underway in Baghdad.

The post of president is traditionally reserved for a Kurdish politician under Iraq’s long-standing power-sharing arrangement that also allocates the prime minister’s role to a Shiite Muslim and the speakership of the legislature to a Sunni Muslim.

Among the presidential hopefuls are familiar political figures and party nominees, with major Kurdish parties selecting their respective candidates ahead of the parliamentary vote.

Incumbent President Abdul Latif Rashid has reportedly begun the registration process as an independent candidate, while the Kurdistan Democratic Party has named Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein and the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan has put forward Nizar Amedi.

The unusually large number of applicants reflects both the symbolic significance of the nation’s highest office and growing public interest in political leadership at a moment of transition.

As parliament moves toward selecting a president in the weeks ahead, political negotiations and power-brokering are expected to intensify among Iraq’s key parties and blocs.

Once elected by the legislature, the president will play a pivotal role in nominating a prime minister and facilitating the formation of the next government, tasks that could shape Iraq’s political landscape for years to come.