Iraq’s Supreme Court ratified on Sunday the results of the May 12 parliamentary elections, bringing an end to months of disputes over their outcome. The resolution of this issue once again brings back to the spotlight political negotiations to form the largest bloc at parliament. This bloc will have the power to name a new prime minister, who will in turn form a new government. Official Iraqi sources revealed to Asharq Al-Awsat that the formation of the largest bloc appears to be no longer in the hands of the alliances that had emerged victorious in the polls, especially the Shiite ones. The debate over the largest bloc had raged between elections victor the Sairoun alliance, of Sadrist movement leader Moqtada al-Sadr, and the Victory alliance, of outgoing Prime Minister Haidar al-Abadi, and between the Fatih bloc, of Hadi al-Ameri, and State of Law coalition, of former PM Nouri al-Maliki. The sources, which spoke on condition of anonymity, said that the issue of the largest bloc was now in the hands of US special presidential envoy Brett McGurk and head of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards Quds Force Qassem Soleimani, both of whom have been in Baghdad for days. “McGurk has been holding talks out in the open,” while Soleimani has kept his meetings secret, said the sources. The only media appearance he had made was when he traveled to al-Najaf city, they revealed. Based on McGurk’s talks, the US has taken the decision to support Abadi’s candidacy as premier, they remarked. As the Shiite blocs continue to scramble in their political negotiations, the Sunni and Kurdish blocs are waiting to see which alliance will yield the largest bloc, said national axis coalition member Dr. Yahya al-Kubisi. The Sunnis generally may not have certain conditions to join a parliamentary bloc, he revealed. Their main concern will be positions in power, which has weakened their camp. Member of the Kurdish Democratic Party Mohsen al-Saadoun told Asharq Al-Awsat that now that the elections results have been ratified, the Kurds should submit their candidates for the positions of president, prime minister and parliament speaker. “The Kurds do not have vetoes against various blocs or candidates, but we have a ministerial program that we would like to implement with our partners in the nation,” he added.