Attention within Iran is now turning to the upcoming decision by the Leadership Council on the selection of the country’s new supreme leader after the council members completed a secret written voting process under the exceptional circumstances imposed by the security developments that Tehran and Qom have witnessed in the past few days.
“Interim Leadership” meeting to discuss selection mechanisms
Iranian News Agency confirmed that the Interim Leadership Council held a meeting chaired by President Massoud Pezeshkian, during which the mechanism for holding meetings of the Expert Leadership Council, a constitutional body empowered to elect the country’s supreme leader, was discussed.
Iranian media reported today (Saturday) that the name of the selected guide is expected to be announced within the next few hours, although the sealed written voting process by council members concluded hours ago, but his identity has not yet been revealed.
Absentee voting due to the dropping of the atomic bomb
According to reports, the security situation has prevented in-person meetings of the council from being held in recent days after bombings of the offices of the Council of Professional Leaders in the city of Qom and the old building of the Legislative Council in Tehran’s Pasteur district, where the council usually meets.
In view of this, it was decided to hold a Council session and conduct the voting process by virtual means, adopting a written and sealed voting mechanism to ensure that members’ votes are documented.
Anticipate future controversies and document votes
According to sources, the council was keen to collect votes in written and sealed form from all members in the past few days to avoid future doubts about the legitimacy of the selection process and to preserve a historical record of the process of selecting new leaders.
A religious call to speed up decisions
In the same context, Tasnim Agency conveyed a message from religious authority Ayatollah Makarem Al-Shirazi to members of the Leadership Expert Council, in which he called on them to accelerate the selection of the country’s new supreme leader.
In his message, Al-Shirazi stressed that a quick resolution of this issue is “necessary in view of the ongoing situation of political turmoil,” noting that taking timely decisions will strengthen the state’s authority and contribute to better organization of national affairs.
Expert meeting…an authority authorized to select guides
Iran’s Leadership Expert Council includes 88 clerics and is a constitutional body responsible for selecting the supreme leader and monitoring his performance. The council’s latest meeting was held under unusual circumstances, following the bombing of its associated buildings during the war, which affected its traditional meeting structure.
President Trump rejects Mojtaba Khamenei
Meanwhile, US President Donald Trump announced last Thursday night that Mojtaba Khamenei, the son of the late Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, was the frontrunner to succeed him, but he called the result “unacceptable,” described him as a “weak character” who would waste time, and stressed that the US government needed someone who would “bring peace and harmony to Iran.”
President Trump expressed his desire to be “personally involved” in selecting a new Iranian leader, and stressed that he would not accept a leader who continues the policies of the late Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, considering that Iran would be forced to return the United States to war within five years.
Attention within Iran is focused on the expected decision by the Assembly of Experts on the selection of the country’s new Supreme Leader after its members completed a written secret voting process under the exceptional circumstances imposed by the security developments witnessed in Tehran and Qom in recent days.
“Ad hoc leadership” meeting to discuss selection mechanism
Iranian News Agency confirmed that the Extraordinary Leadership Council held a meeting chaired by President Massoud Bezakian, during which the mechanism for convening the Assembly of Experts, the constitutional body with the power to select the country’s supreme leader, was discussed.
According to Iranian media reports today (Saturday), the written and sealed voting process by members of parliament concluded hours ago, and the names of the elected leaders are expected to be announced within hours, although their identities have not been revealed so far.
Remote voting by bombing
According to reports, the security situation has prevented physical sessions of the parliament from being held in recent days after bombings attacked the offices of the Council of Experts in Qom City, as well as the old building of the Legislative Assembly in Tehran’s Pasdaran district, where the regular parliament is held.
In view of this, it has been decided to conduct the convening of Parliament and the voting process by virtual means, adopting a written and sealed voting mechanism to ensure documentation of the votes of members.
Anticipate future controversies and document votes
Sources said Congress was keen to collect sealed votes in writing from all members over the past few days to avoid future doubts about the legitimacy of the selection process and preserve a historical record of electing a new leader.
Religious call for speedy decision-making
In this regard, the Tasnim organization conveyed a message from religious authority Ayatollah Makarem Shirazi to members of the Council of Experts, urging them to expedite the selection of the country’s new supreme leader.
In his message, Siraj stressed that a speedy resolution of the issue is “essential in view of the ongoing political turmoil,” noting that taking decisions at the right time will strengthen the state’s authority and contribute to better organization of national politics.
A gathering of experts…an institution empowered to choose leaders
Iran’s Council of Experts is a constitutional body made up of 88 clerics and responsible for selecting the supreme leader and monitoring his performance. The convening of parliament took place under unusual circumstances, following wartime bombing of buildings associated with parliament, which affected the traditional workings of parliament.
President Trump rejects Mojtaba Khamenei
Meanwhile, US President Donald Trump announced last Thursday night that Mojtaba Khamenei, the son of late Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, was the frontrunner to succeed him, but declared the result “unacceptable”, calling him a “weak character” who would waste time, and stressing the need for someone in the US government to “bring peace and harmony to Iran”.
President Trump expressed his desire to be “personally involved” in choosing a new Iranian leader, and stressed that his country would not accept a leader who would continue the policies of the late Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, considering that if he continued his policies, the United States would be forced to return to war within five years.
