Muhammad II was the fifth Caliph of Córdoba and the first to be elected under the council system, a reform put in place by his father Hisham III. Despite the intention of relieving tension between Moors and the Berbers, he was the Moorish choice in the 1037 election and his reign was received negatively by the Berbers. During his later years, he attempted to gain support for one of his own sons to be elected by the council of twelve after his death but nominations for two of his sons split the Moorish vote, causing another to be selected instead.