Political Structure & Decision-making

System of Government

On February 11, 1979 a diverse coalition that included the clergy, merchants (bazaaris), liberal reformists, leftists and students, among others who were led by Grand Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini ended the monarchy of Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi in Iran. Shortly afterwards, on 1 April 1979, Iran became an “Islamic Republic” following a carefully worded referendum which gained 98.2% of the vote.

The Islamic Republic is a unique form of government where “Islamic” and “Republican” structures run parallel to each other. For example, while there is a president as the head of the executive branch, there is also a Supreme Leader as the head of state; similarly, regular courts are matched by revolutionary courts; the army by the revolutionary guards; there is an elected Majles (parliament) but also an appointed Guardian Council, which serves as the upper house of parliament; etc.

The fundamental concept of this Islamic government is modeled after Ayatollah Khomeini’s ideas, the rule of the jurisprudent (velayat-e faqih). This means that the state is to be guided by a learned religious jurist who rules in the absence of the Twelfth Imam or messiah. Ayatollah Khomeini, endowed with unique popular and religious authority, headed the Islamic Republic as the first Supreme Leader up to his death in June of 1989.

The arrangement of each institution and political body in the Islamic political structure is such that makes it vertically and horizontally accountable. Even the supreme leadership is subject to a system of checks and balances through the elected Assembly of Experts, a body that appoints and has the power to dismiss the Supreme Leader.  Therefore, Iran's system of government may be acknowledged as a blend of democracy and theocracy, with authority derived from the constitution enacted in 1979 and revised in 1989. 

Within the political structure, there are three branches of authority under the chief of state, or Supreme Leader: the judiciary, the parliament, and the executive. While the top law-making body, the Majles, and the president are elected through universal suffrage, the head of the nation, the Supreme Leader, is an appointed religious leader; albeit an elected body, namely the Assembly of Experts, appoints him.

The following chart summarizes the power structure of Iran:

Leadership: The Supreme Leader

The Supreme Leadership is inseparably linked to the late Grand Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini’s religious-political theory.  By means of Article 107 of the 1979 Constitution, the concept of velayat-e faqih was recognized as a state principle. The Assembly of Experts, consisting of numerous high-ranking clergymen has the right to elect, supervise and if necessary, dismiss the Supreme Leader.

Since June 4, 1989, Iran's head of state has been Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Article 110 of the 1979 Constitution firmly recognizes the authority and rights of the Leader, and states that the Leader determines the general guidelines of Iranian domestic and foreign policy and can veto legislation at any time. Furthermore, he acts as commander in chief of all armed forces, commands all security organs and the armed forces and may declare war or peace. Moreover, in accordance with Article 110, the Leader must sign the order formalizing the election of the president and has the authority to dismiss the president, if the Supreme Court declares him politically incompetent.

The Supreme Leader also has the responsibility to appoint or dismiss the following people: 

.                      • The supreme commander of the regular army and the security services

.                      • The head of the Judiciary

.                      • The supreme commander of the Islamic Republic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC)

.                      • The head of the state-run television and radio, Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB)

.                      • The six clerical jurists of the Council of Guardians

Although, the Supreme Leader does not usually intervene in the concerns of the state executive branch, he supervises executive policies and has the constitutional right to set the general policy frameworks of the regime. Among others, the Leader has the ability to wield his power in the following five diverse spheres:

.                      •           Ministries in the executive branch

.                      •           The armed forces and the security forces

.                      •           Friday Imams (Provincial representatives)

.                      •           Iranian cultural centers in foreign countries

.                      •           Religious and revolutionary organizations

Executive Branch: The President

The president of the Islamic Republic is elected by a majority of votes cast for a four-year term, and he could be re-elected only once for a successive term, though he could run again after sitting out a term. The president presides over a cabinet of ministers and vice-presidents. The official powers and responsibilities of the president are rather vague in the Iranian constitution. Two elements vest power within the hands of the executive:

Firstly, Article 113 of the constitution that states: After the office of Leadership, the president is the highest official in the country. He is the responsible for implementing the constitution and acting as the head of the executive, except in matters directly concerned with [the office of] the Leadership.

Secondly, the main and real power of the executive branch rests in its control over Iran’s oil revenue.

As the head of the government, the president has the responsibility to appoint and dismiss ministers, who must be confirmed by the Parliament. The president also acts as a chairman to the Supreme National Security Council – an influential committee that supervises all government activities related to defense, foreign policy and intelligence services. In addition, the president wields considerable influence in two institutions:

•     The Management & Planning Organization (MPO - formerly the Plan and Budget Organization) – the president controls this organization, extraordinarily crucial to the drafting of economic policies.

•     The Supreme Council of the Islamic Cultural Revolution – responsible for educational and cultural issues. The president is the chairman and possesses influence over the personal composition of this council.

Even though the strongest power center in the Islamic republic lies in the hands of the Supreme Leader, without the cooperation of the president, the stability of the Islamic Republic could not be maintained.  In view of this, the executive branch is the second most powerful body of the Islamic republic, with its influence primarily on socio-cultural and economic policies of the country.

The Legislative Branch: Majles

The Islamic Consultative Assembly (Majles-e Showra-ye Eslami) or Majles, is comprised of 290 members elected for four-year terms. The number of seats was raised in the 6^th Majles from 270 to account for population growth (the Constitution allows an increase of up to 20 electoral seats in every decade).

Among the significant functions of the Majles are the following:

.                      •     According to Article 52, investigating and approving the annual state budget.

.                      •     Based on Articles 71 to 75, drafting legislation

.                      •     Ratifying international treaties, protocols, agreements and contracts (Article 77)

.                      •     Consenting to minor changes in the country’s boundaries that are in the national interest, through the support of four-fifths of Majles deputies.

.                      •     Debating motions put forward by the government on the cabinet’s approval, as well as bills supported by at least 15 Majles deputies.

.                      •     Approving the cabinet’s request for proclamation of martial law for a period of less than 30 days.

.                      •     Finally, according to Article 76, investigating and examining any affair of the nation.

The Majles is Iran’s main lawmaking body and a key institution. However, the bills it passes must first gain the approval of the Guardian Council (GC), which acts like the upper house of parliament. The GC (see below), essentially checks the parliamentary bills against the Constitution and also Islamic teachings, before putting its stamp of approval of them.

Nevertheless, the constitution has carefully given the legislative branch powers proportionate to those of the executive and judicial branches. For that reason, even the supreme leadership, with its broad field of dominion, may not dissolve the Majles. 

The Guardian Council

The Guardian Council (GC – Showra-ye Negahban) consists of 12 members, 6 clerics canonists and 6 lay jurists. The Supreme Leader appoints the clerical members while the head of the Judiciary nominates 12 lay lawyers, out of which the Majles selects 6.

Each member serves for a three-year term, which is extendable by another three years. The GC essentially determines whether laws passed by the Majles(the parliament) are in compliance with both Islamic principles and the Constitution. Without the approval of the GC, the bills of the Majles would not become law, unless the Expediency Council intervenes (see the section on the Expediency Council below). In addition, the GC is responsible for interpreting constitutional law and supervising elections. At the present time, the conservatives control this powerful body.

The GC’s main responsibility in elections is vetting candidates that are deemed unqualified to run and also validating the election results, to protect against fraud.

The Expediency Council

Created in 1986 by Ayatollah Khomeini’s personal decree, the Expediency Council (EC) is one of the key institutions of the Islamic Republic and is anticipated to grow in terms of authority and influence in the coming years. The EC (Majma’-e Tashkhis-eMaslehat-eNezam) is a mediator and arbitrator between the Majles and the Guardian Council.  That is, in the case of a deadlock between the parliament and the Guardian Council, the EC steps in to resolve the dispute.

It is important to note that not only does the EC have the last say in the matter, but that this body could also overrule the Constitution if it is expedient and deemed in the interests of the regime to do so.

In March 1997, two months before the presidential elections in Iran, Ayatollah Khamenei reconfirmed Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani as the chairperson of the EC. Furthermore, he affirmed that the Council was to assume greater responsibilities while serving as his main consultative body on general policies of the Islamic Republic of Iran. Moreover, it seems that the Council is legally authorized to make foreign policy in compliance with guidelines established in Article 152 of the Iranian Constitution.

The Assembly of Experts

The first Assembly of Experts, consisting of 75 members, was elected by the Iranian people in August 1979 in order to draft the Islamic Republic’s constitution. However, after the completion of that task, the first assembly was dissolved.

The second assembly, elected in 1982, consisted of 83 members. Presently the Qom-based body has 86 clerical members, elected for an eight-year term. In accordance with the 1980 decree of assembly, every province elects representative clerics based on the province’s population. However, if the population of any Iranian province exceeds a million people, the province has the right to elect one additional cleric for each additional half million residents. Hashemi Rafsanjani has been the Chairman of the Assembly since August 2007.

The main duties of the Assembly of Experts, established in the 1979 constitution include the election of the Supreme Leader (Article 107) and the dismissal of the Leader, if he fails to perform in office or fails to present the required qualifications (Article 111). The assembly convenes at least once a year for a two-day meeting in the capital, Tehran. Most members of the assembly hold other posts and functions in either the revolutionary organizations or institutions, including the Society of Teachers of Qom Theological Seminaries.

In 1989, the Assembly of Experts chose Ayatollah Khamenei as Iran’s Supreme Leader following the demise of Grand Ayatollah Khomeini.