1. Lenny Dong IRAN: POLITICAL INSTITUTIONS

2.  Single handedly the most powerful political figure in the country  Can:  Overrule or dismiss the president  Appoint the head of the judiciary and half of the Guardian Council  Appoint commanders of the all branches of military  Is entrusted with the task of ensuring that laws conform to Islam  Originally had to be the highest- ranking Shiite cleric  now just has to be a member of the clergy ONE MAN ABOVE ALL OTHERS THE SUPREME LEADER Current Supreme Leader: Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei

3.  Directly elected by voters  Needs an absolute majority of votes, so run-off if no majority  Term is four years, term limit of two  After the an amendment in 1989, the presidency was strengthened, and the office of prime minister was removed  Powers:  Chooses members of his cabinet, which are approved by the parliament  Presents legislation to the parliament  Upholds the constitution  Coordinates government decisions HEAD OF EXECUTIVE THE PRESIDENT Current President: Hassan Rouhani

4.  AKA Council of Guardians  12-member council that can veto any legislation passed by the parliament  Determines who can run in local, presidential, parliamentary, and Assembly of Religious Experts elections (vets candidates)  Six theologians appointed by the Supreme Leader and six jurists nominated by the Head of the Judiciary and approved by the parliament  Six-year terms GUARDIAN COUNCIL State emblem of the Islamic Republic of Iran

5.  86-member male assembly(sorry no females allowed)  Charged with appointing and evaluating the performance of the Supreme Leader  Popularly elected, but…  Consists of clerics for the most part  Candidates must pass an examination on religious knowledge, and are chosen by the Guardian Council ASSEMBLY OF (RELIGIOUS) EXPERTS Former Iranian president and head of Iran's Assembly of Experts, Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani (C), delivers a speech during a meeting of the top clerical body in Tehran on September 14, 2010 (Photo: ATTA KENARE/AFP/Getty Images)

6.  Unicameral  290 deputies elected for four-year terms  Can introduce and pass laws  Can summon and impeach ministers or the president  Bills have to be approved by the Guardian Council  Not always rubberstamp – fierce debates take place in the parliament  The constitution mandates small religious minorities have to have seats reserved in the parliament  Directly elected in multi-member and single member districts PARLIAMENT “MAJLES” (ISLAMIC CONSULTATIVE ASSEMBLY) The current speaker, Ali Larijani, is a former chief nuclear negotiator

7.  AKA Council for the Expediency of the State  Created by the Supreme Leader in 1988 to settle disputes between the Guardian Council and the parliament  24 leading political personalities in the country  Resolves disputes in a way that best serves the interest of the system  Appointed for three-year terms  Composed of:  Heads of three branches of government  Six clerical members of the Guardian council  Others appointed by the Supreme Leader EXPEDIENCY COUNCIL

8.  Islamic Republic Party, the most important post-revolutionary political party, was dissolved in 1987 because of internal disputes  Later there was a ban on any party formation  Political parties were legalized in 1998, but the parties are still at an early stage of development (fluid, multi-party system)  Largest reform party is the Islamic Iran Participation Front PARTIES

9.  Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei (Supreme Leader) – Combatant Clergy Association  Hassan Rouhani (President) – Moderation and Development Party  Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani(Chairman of the Expediency Council) – Executives of Construction Party  Sadeq Larijani (Chief Justice of Iran) – Independent CURRENT POLITICIANS & PARTY

10.  Almost an election a year  Eligible voters have increased from 20 million people in 1979 to over 46 million in 2004. (50 million as of 2013)  Although candidates were vetted, elections are still very competitive with high voter turnout (72% in the 2013 presidential election)  “Reformist” candidates are usually, if not always, disqualified by the Guardian Council  Universal suffrage from age of 18 since 2007 ELECTIONS

11.  Highly controversial  The court system should be independent, but since the Supreme Leader appoints the Head of the Judiciary, the judges will almost always be uniformly conservative clerics  Religious zealots also known as Hezbollahis (members of the Party of God) serve as watchdogs of the clerical establishment  Recent years, the judicial system has been used to undermine reforms by imprisoning reformists and closing down reformist papers  Head of Judiciary gets to appoint 6 members of the Guardian Council THE JUDICIARY Current head of judiciary: Sadeq Larijani

12.  Sharia was restored as the core of the legal system after the 1979 revolution  The 1979 constitution codified “Islamic law” as “state law”  Full of contradiction, which gave rise to debates concerning the politics of Iranian legal arrangements  This allows the Guardian Council to vet out candidates who aren’t favorable LEGAL SYSTEM

13.  Revolutionary Guards:  Formed after the revolution to protect new leaders and institutions  Maintains internal security  Top brass is usually loyal to the supreme leader  Regular army:  Safeguards borders (international)  Commanders are appointed by the Supreme Leader MILITARY Revolutionary Guards

14.  Influential economic player  Has control over strategic industries, commercial services and black- market enterprises  Controls roughly $12 billion in construction and engineering capital  Originally a “people’s army”, similar to the US National Guard  Formed in 1979 as a counterweight to the regular military and to avoid a coup  Controls Iran’s Basij Resistance Forces  Has the Quds Force as the paramilitary arm which acts as external affairs branch. REVOLUTIONARY GUARDS

15.  A paramilitary volunteer corps  Originally a fighting group in the 1980-88 war with Iraq  Currently a grass-roots defender of the system:  Roles such as Islamic morality police at check points  Shock troops dealing with pro- reform gatherings  Can be found in all governmental bodies, universities and schools.  Volunteers enjoy favorable treatment from the government BASIJ

16.  Very little is known  Created during the Iran-Iraq war  10,000 to 15,000 personnel as of 2013  Mandate is to conduct foreign policy missions  Supported terrorist activities and armed pro-Iranian militant groups across the Mideast and beyond  Provided support to the Kurds fighting Saddam Hussein  Primary goal: Support foreign Islamic revolutionary movements QUDS FORCE

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