CAIRO, October 13. /TASS/. The Council of Representatives (Parliament) of Iraq elected Abdel Latif Rashid as a new president, the Rudaw TV channel reported.

Rashid secured more votes in the second round than his opponent Barham Salih - the current President of Iraq.

Salih left the parliament building without waiting for the final outcome of the vote.

According to the Parliament, a total of 162 votes were cast for Rashid, while 99 favored Salih; 8 ballots were deemed invalid. Thus, Rashid, who served as the Minister of Water Resources in 2003-2011, became the new president.

Prime Minister of Iraq Mustafa al-Kadhimi became one of the first to congratulate Rashid with a successful election.

According to the Iraqi Constitution, the head of state must represent the Kurdish community of Iraq, while Prime Minister represents Shia Muslims, and Parliament Speaker represents Sunni Muslims. A president is being elected by the parliament with a two-thirds majority. The new head of state must appoint a new Prime Minister within 15 days after election.