The Nineveh provincial council’s election of Lt. Gen. Najm al-Jubouri as governor to replace Mansour al-Mareed stirred a political and legal dispute in Iraq on Sunday. “The dismissal of the former governor and the election of a new one are considered two unconstitutional and illegitimate moves,” legal expert Ahmad al-Abadi told Asharq Al-Awsat. He said that based on Article 7 of the provincial councils law No. 21 of 2008, the election of a new governor is not valid if all legal measures are not completed, including an appeal against decisions issued by the provincial councils before the Cassation Chamber within 30 days. In light of this law, the dismissed or resigned governor stays in office until a decision is issued by the administrative judiciary, in addition to a presidential decree on his dismissal and the appointment of a new governor, the expert said. “Therefore, the election of a new governor is considered invalid because the mandate of the current provincial council has expired,” Abadi said. However, MP Mohammed al-Karbouli defended the election and said it was consistent with the laws of provincial councils valid until March 2020. “We support the election of Jubouri and we wish him luck in managing the governorate, which needs a lot of work to return to normalcy,” the deputy said. On Sunday, Jubouri was elected by 22 out of 39 council member votes. The new governor was a former major general in the Iraqi security forces and a former commander of the Nineveh Operations in the past few years. Following his election, Mareed rejected the decision of the provincial council, describing it as illegitimate. "I will continue to carry out my duties as governor," he affirmed.