Head of Tehran Election Headquarters: Some Want to Disrupt the Rules of the Game

Shahabuddin Chavoshi, the head of the Tehran provincial election headquarters, criticized the observers of the Guardian Council 'in the counties' and warned that 'some' want to 'anger the election officials and disrupt the rules of the game.' Mr. Chavoshi, who is also the political deputy of the Tehran governor, stated on Tuesday, December 15, that 'at lower levels in the counties, a member of the supervisory board informs the governor that they are even unwilling to eat the lunch of the eleventh government. How can such a person be accepted in the supervisory board?' The head of the Tehran election headquarters asserted that 'it is our right to introduce anyone to the supervisory boards, and their duty is to assess the qualifications of these individuals.' He added, 'In many governorates, coordination is made with the supervisory boards for introducing trusted individuals, but in some cases, trusted individuals are rejected without any specific reason. When asked for the reason, they say it is because this individual was disqualified in the previous term.' Mr. Chavoshi posed the question, 'Are we supposed to act according to the processes of previous terms?' and said, 'Why do we not believe that the political atmosphere of society has changed?' According to Iranian election law, the election headquarters and executive boards are under the Ministry of Interior, which is responsible for conducting elections, while the Guardian Council is responsible for overseeing elections. The tenth term of the Islamic Consultative Assembly and the fifth term of the Assembly of Experts are scheduled to be held on March 26 of this year. The criticism from the head of the Tehran election headquarters towards the supervisory boards of the Guardian Council comes shortly after President Hassan Rouhani referred to the Guardian Council as 'an overseer, not an executor' of elections, stating that 'oversight and execution should not be mixed.' Mr. Rouhani said, 'The one who should determine whether an individual is qualified to participate in the elections or not is the executive board.' These remarks elicited negative reactions from the Guardian Council, senior officials of the Islamic Republic, and conservatives. Ali Khamenei, the leader of the Islamic Republic, also described the Guardian Council as 'the watchful eye of the people and the system in elections' and identified one of the 'bad habits' in Iran as the tendency of 'some individuals to question the integrity of elections.' The head of the Tehran election headquarters also mentioned in his recent remarks that 'the supervisory oversight is proposed and must be implemented,' but at the same time added, 'If we think that oversight is beyond the scope, we must provide documented reports.' Mr. Chavoshi emphasized: 'Some want to anger us and disrupt the rules of the game because they feel they will not have a significant share in the next parliament.'