1. STUDENT NOTES - 2

3. INSTITUTIONS OF GOVERMENT
Tension: Between Islam and practical governance
Remember: You can’t ask God what He thinks!
Two types of institutions coexist:
Appointed and Elected
Dualism reflects the attempted synthesis between divine and popular sovereignty institutions
Multiple Power Centers:
Institutions created by the revolutionaries to supplement the activities of the traditional state institutions, with which they share overlapping responsibilities
This further complicates the institutional structure of Iran

4. INSTITUTIONS OF GOVERMENT
Political system fuses theocracy and democracy in a unitary state
Theocratic Institutions:
Supreme Leader
Guardian Council
Expediency Council
Democratic Institutions:
Assembly of Religious Experts
Majles
President

7. INSTITUTIONS OF GOVERMENT
THEOCRACY
DEMOCRACY
Do not fit into 3 branch structure
Powers to supersede all other bodies
Supreme Leader – appointed for life, commander in chief, dismiss president, nomination/appointment
Ultimate power as head of state
Guardian Council – 12 clerics, review bills of Majles, decide candidates
Expediency Council – collectively powerful; referee for GC and M; now originate own law
The president
Popularly elected; 4 years; 2 terms; chief executive; usually clergy
Assembly of Religious Experts
Majles (parliament)
Unicameral; lawmaking power, appointment/removal power

8. INSTITUTIONS OF GOVERMENT
Supreme Leader – most powerful political figure
Chosen by Assembly of Religious Experts (only tested once, in 1989)
Appointed for life
Expected to act as a trustee of community by supervising politics and ensuring laws conform to Islam
Powers
Eliminate presidential candidates
Dismissal of the president
Commander of the armed forces
Declares war and peace
Appoints many administrators and judges
Nominates up to 6 members to Guardian Council
Appoints heads of other agencies, like broadcasters
Head of State with real power

9. Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini
Supreme Leader of Iran,

10. Ayatollah Ali Khamenei
Supreme Leader of Iran, 1989-Present

11. INSTITUTIONS OF GOVERMENT
Guardian Council
12 male clerics, serve 6 year terms
6 appointed by Supreme Leader
6 nominated by Chief Judge, approved by Majles
Review bills passed by Majles to ensure they comply with the sharia
Power to VETO any legislations passed by Majlis that is at odds with basic tenants of Islam
Vetting power - May disqualify candidates for election as part of their jurist guardianship (along with Supreme Leader)

12. INSTITUTIONS OF GOVERMENT
Assembly of Religious Experts
86 men elected by the people every 4 years
Use to only allow clerics, but requirement eliminated in 1998
Candidates may still be rejected by Guardian Council
With Supreme Leader and Guardian Council, in charge of constitutional interpretation
Choose a successor to the Supreme Leader, and may remove him as well
Chairman is currently Mohammad-Reza Mahdavi Kani

13. INSTITUTIONS OF GOVERMENT
Expediency Council
Created by Khomeini to referee disputes between Guardian Council and Majles
Members appointed by Supreme Leader
Has gained the power to originate legislation
Collection of the most powerful men in Iran, including:
High ranking clerics
President
Chief Judge
Speaker of Majles
Members of the Guardian Council
Headed by Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani

14. INSTITUTIONS OF GOVERMENT
President and Cabinet
Head of government
Elected every 4 years by voters, may serve 2 terms
Majority system
Candidates approved by Guardian Council
Constitution requires him to be a “pious Shiite”
Powers
Devise the budget
“Supervise” economic matters
Propose legislation to the Majles
Executing the law/policies
Signs treaties and laws
Chairs the National Security Council
Appoints cabinet and other provincial officials

15. INSTITUTIONS OF GOVERMENT
Iran does not have a presidential system, so the head of the executive does not have the same authority as presidents in countries that have a presidential system, such as the U.S., Mexico, and Nigeria.
However, the president does represent the highest official representing democratic principles in Iran, and he functions as the head of government, while the supreme leader serves as head of state.

16. INSTITUTIONS OF GOVERMENT
Legislature – The Majles
NOT RUBBER STAMP
Pass laws with approval of Guardian Council
Interpret legislation, without contradiction of judiciary
Approve 6 members to Guardian Council nominated by Chief Judge
Investigate misconduct of bureaucracy and judiciary
Remove cabinet officials (not the president)
Approve the budget, cabinet, treaties, and loans

17. INSTITUTIONS OF GOVERMENT
290 deputies, 4 year terms
Five guaranteed seats for recognized religious minorities: Christians, Jews, and Zoroastrians
Nonrecognized religious minorities (e.g., Baha’is) cannot run
Direct Elections
Elections held on a nonpartisan basis (ballots do not have party identification or philosophy)
28 multimember districts (based on population size)
Two round voting:
Candidate must receive at least 25% on first ballot
If more candidates clear this threshold to fill a district’s seats: second round held several months later for top two candidates with the most support

18. INSTITUTIONS OF GOVERMENT
Judiciary – not independent
Supreme leader appoints head of judiciary who appoints senior judges
Types of law in Iran
Sharia – Islamic law, supersedes all other laws, chiefly interpreted by Supreme Leader
Qanun – No sacred basis, just statutes made by legislative bodies (Majles, for example)
Must not contradict sharia
No judicial review – legal authority is not in the constitution, but in interpretation of sharia
Appeals system is in place, but Khomeini argued spirit of sharia was for local judges to make final decisions in most cases
Sharia dictates harsh punishments (death) for a wide variety of “crimes”, but Islamic Republic has softened the use of these over the years

19. INSTITUTIONS OF GOVERMENT
Military
Revolutionary Guard – created by Khomeini to counter the Shah’s existing regular army, navy, and air force
Strong political influence, increasingly independent
Army defends the borders, Revolutionary Guard protects the Islamic Republic
All commanded by Supreme Leader, who appoints top commanders
No fear of coup:
Military respects orderly transfer of power
Khomeini legacy: military should stay out of politics
Loyal to supreme leader

20. Theocratic & Democratic Elements of Iran’s Government Structure
Supreme Leader
Theocratic Characteristics
Jurist guardianship; ultimate interpreter of shari’a; appointed for life
Democratic Characteristics
Guardian Council
Jurist guardianship; interpreter of shari’a; six members selected by the Supreme Leader
Six members selected by the Majlis; which is popularly elected, indirect democratic tie
Assembly of Religious Experts
Jurist guardianship; interpreter of shari’a
Directly elected by the people

21. Theocratic & Democratic Elements of Iran’s Government Structure
Expediency Council
Theocratic Characteristics
Appointed by the Supreme Leader; most members are clerics
Democratic Characteristics
Some members are not clerics
Majlis
Responsibility to uphold shari’a
Directly elected by the people; pass qanun (statutes)
Judiciary
Courts held to shari’a law; subject to the judicial judgments of the Supreme Leader, Guardian Council
Court structure similar to those in democracies; “modern” penalties, such as fines and imprisonment

23. Policy Formulation
In Iran state policy is set by a number of bodies, some of them explicitly mentioned in the Constitution, some not. Given the mixed nature of the political system, overlaps, duplications, and even contradictions abound, and it is not rare for different policymaking bodies to work at cross-purposes.

24. Policy Formulation Economic Policymaking: most contentious topic
1980s liberal approach: private sector, market mechanisms
Mixed results, led to hardship, faced opposition
Under Ahmadinejad:
Populist rhetoric of redistribution, privatization
Uses government contracts to reward allies
Spreading Progress and Prosperity
State educational system good
Birth control, health care
Roads, basic services

25. Policy Outcomes Islamization of Society
Alcohol banned except for non-Muslim minorities
Veiling enforced in public spaces
State committed to minimizing contact between unrelated men, women
Religious content of education vastly expanded
Gruesome physical punishment to adulterers, homosexuals, offenders of religious morality
Outwardly a success, underneath surface: bootlegging, prostitution, drugs, corruption
Religious practice has become more private

26. Policy Outcomes Gender Relations Legal restrictions on women’s rights
Discriminations instituted by Islamic Republic
Fields of study closed to women
Sports restricted, attire incompatible with veiling
Compete in sports, at locations men not admitted
Women increasing participation in public life
Many working outside home
Universities’ restrictions on studies being lifted
Mal-veiling
Islamic feminism

27. Policy Outcomes Foreign Policy
Under Shah - US an ally
Now – neither East nor West
1990s: national interest rather than exporting revolution dominated
Third World desire to escape hegemony of West
Regional trade in goods, services with Middle East
Emboldened Kurds of Iran
Main issue confronting Iranian diplomacy is nuclear program
International Atomic Energy Agency monitoring
Sanctions