Rouhani: In Current Conditions, Every Vote is Important for Leadership Selection

Hassan Rouhani, the President of Iran, emphasized in his campaign for the Assembly of Experts elections that every vote in the upcoming elections is "decisive" and stated, "Sometimes, even one vote is important for selecting the leadership." According to Tasnim News Agency, during his campaign broadcast on Sunday, February 14, he announced that the Assembly of Experts must "continuously" monitor the qualities of the Supreme Leader and, "God forbid, if necessary, remove the leadership from their position." Rouhani stated that the Assembly of Experts' research committee "meets regularly and monitors the qualities of leadership." He also mentioned that in the constitutional Article 107 committee, discussions are always held regarding those who may potentially assume future leadership of the system. Previously, Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, head of the Expediency Council, had reported in an interview with ILNA that a group had been designated to review leadership selection "in case of an incident." In response to these remarks, Ahmad Khatami, a member of the Assembly of Experts' board, stated on Thursday, December 17, that this committee investigates "individuals under consideration for leadership" with "confidentiality" and will report to the Supreme Leader. Members of the Assembly of Experts have previously announced that the reports of the constitutional Article 107 committees and the research of this Assembly are confidential and will not be published. Rouhani has repeatedly urged the public to "understand that their presence at the ballot boxes is very, very important" and that "no one should boycott the election for any reason." Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani has also described the upcoming elections as "very decisive" and urged people to participate. Former President Mohammad Khatami has also called on people to go to the polls to send "more deserving individuals to both assemblies" and to prevent, as much as possible, the entry of those who are far from the ideals and demands of the majority. These three individuals have also protested against the widespread disqualifications of election candidates. Both Rafsanjani and Khatami have objected to the disqualification of Hassan Khomeini in the Assembly of Experts elections. In contrast, Ahmad Jannati, the Secretary of the Guardian Council, stated in his campaign broadcast for the Assembly of Experts elections that the Guardian Council acts according to the "law." He added, "The Guardian Council is in no way a place for accepting orders, and we cannot accept personal requests, which is why many become upset, and this also creates enmity." Jannati's remarks come amid accusations from critics that the Guardian Council conducts local investigations about candidates contrary to the law and announces "disqualification" for some candidates against the law. For instance, Mostafa Tajzadeh, a jailed member of the Participation Front, mentioned in a letter to the Supreme Leader in early February that the election law "does not mention" the term "disqualification." The former political deputy of the Ministry of Interior wrote that "responsible legal centers" for responding to inquiries about candidate qualifications, according to this resolution, are the judiciary, Ministry of Intelligence, police, and civil registration, not "legal but irresponsible bodies in elections" like the Revolutionary Guards and Basij. According to a resolution passed by the Expediency Council in 1999, the bodies reviewing candidates' qualifications are "obliged to examine candidates solely based on legal provisions and based on valid reasons and documents sent by responsible legal centers to executive and supervisory bodies" and if they reject a candidate's qualification, they "must inform the candidate of the reason for the disqualification." Tajzadeh revealed that at the time of this resolution's approval in the Expediency Council, only Jannati and one or two other members of the Guardian Council did not vote in favor. In this context, the Combatant Clergy Association supported Rafsanjani, who stated that the republic and Islamism have been weakened in recent years. Rouhani stated that people will not vote for "those of conflict and extremism" in the elections. The Supervisory Council of the Radio and Television warned about cutting Rouhani's speech. The final candidates for the Assembly of Experts were announced; there is no competition in six electoral districts. University professors advised Rouhani that it is better not to hold non-competitive elections.