BAGHDAD, Iraq – In a chaotic session marred by shouting, finger-pointing, and walkouts by Iraq’s top leaders, the new parliament failed yesterday to choose a speaker – an impasse that brought tensions to the surface and raised concerns about a government that still isn’t in place two months after landmark elections.

The National Assembly’s second meeting ever was certainly its stormiest – marked by outbursts of anger and wrangling among Shiite, Sunni, and Kurdish legislators. The session was first delayed for nearly three hours, then abruptly closed to the media, its live TV feed cut off.

The Sunni Arab minority – dominant under former dictator Saddam Hussein and believed to be the backbone of the insurgency – was given until Sunday to come up with a candidate to serve as speaker of the 275-seat parliament. The Shiite-led United Iraqi Alliance and the Kurdish coalition want an Arab Sunni to hold the position as a way of healing rifts with the Sunnis, many of whom boycotted the January 30 elections or simply feared attacks at the polls.

“We saw that things were confused today, so we gave [the Sunnis] a last chance,” said Hussein al-Sadr, a Shiite cleric and member of interim Prime Minister Allawi’s coalition. “We expect the Sunni Arab brothers to nominate their candidate. Otherwise, we will vote on a candidate on Sunday.”

More meetings were scheduled for this week. “There’s a consensus that the talks should continue tonight and in the coming days so that Sunday’s session will be better,” Alliance negotiator Abdul Karim al-Anzi said.

Iraqis, already frustrated with drawn-out negotiations, were angered by the meeting. Some legislators argued the divisions reflected Iraq’s new democracy. “People should get used to seeing different opinions being discussed,” Mr. al-Anzi said.

Yesterday’s drama left some questioning how Iraq’s new lawmakers would tackle more important issues as they shape the country’s democratic transformation. The assembly still needs to name a president and two deputies, who will in turn nominate a prime minister. The presidency is expected to go to Kurdish leader Jalal Talabani and the premiership to Shiite politician Ibrahim al-Jaafari. Some politicians speculated the delay could force them to request a six-month extension to the August 15 deadline for drafting a permanent constitution.

Haggling over the different ministries also continues, with both the Kurds and Shiites asking to get the Oil Ministry. Some Sunnis hope to get the Interior Ministry, but the Alliance wants them to have the Defense Ministry instead.

Negotiators spent much of the morning trying to convince interim President al-Yawer, a Sunni Arab, to take the speaker’s post. But he refused, and is holding out for one of two vice presidential spots. “With the small number of Sunni Arabs in the assembly, this post won’t put us in a position to strike a balance,” Mr. al-Yawer said.

Ammar Wajeeh of the Sunnis’ Iraqi Islamic Party said that in addition to Mr. al-Yawer, Alliance and Kurdish officials offered the speaker’s post to Minister of Industry Hajim al-Hassani, who refused it partly because it was more administrative than political.

The Sunnis have put forth Adnan al-Janabi, who ran on Mr. Allawi’s ticket, Mr. Wajeeh said. But the Alliance objected because Mr. al-Janabi’s brother once worked as a senior official of the ruling party under Mr. Hussein, he added.