Baghdad, Iraq ? Ibrahim al-Jaafari, the head of a religious party who fought Saddam Hussein and took refuge in Iran for a decade, was chosen Tuesday as the dominant Shiite ticket’s candidate for prime minister, making him the overwhelming favorite for the post.

Al-Jaafari’s selection came after former Washington ally Ahmad Chalabi dropped out of the race following three days of round-the-clock bargaining. Al-Jaafari has been seen as having close ties to Iran’s ruling clergy, though he denies any links to a government that President Bush has said is part of an “axis of evil.”

But al-Jaafari must now build a ruling coalition and win agreement from the Kurds and others on candidates for Cabinet posts and the largely ceremonial presidency.

It may not be easy for the 58-year-old physician from Karbala. He’ll have to meet conflicting demands from Kurds, Sunni Arabs and even Islamic hard-liners within his United Iraqi Alliance, which won about 51 percent of the seats in the assembly.