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Supreme Leader of Iran

Head of state of Iran

Field	Value
post	Supreme Leadership Authority
body	the Islamic Republic of Iran
native_name	fa
رهبر جمهوری اسلامی ایران
insignia	Emblem of Iran.svgclass=skin-invert
insigniacaption	Emblem of Iran
flag	Flag of Iran.svg
flagsize	144
flagborder	yes
flagcaption	Flag of Iran
image	Meeting of the families of the martyrs of the authority with the Leader of the Revolution on the birthday of Amir al-Mu'minin (peace be upon him) 58 (khamenei.ir, 2026) (cropped 3).jpg
imagesize	200px
incumbent	Ali Khamenei
incumbentsince	6 August 1989
department	Office of the Supreme Leader
style	His Eminence
type	Head of state
Commander-in-chief
Provisional head of the three branches of the state (the Judiciary, the Legislature, and the Executive)
residence	Jamaran Hussainiya (former)
House of Leadership (present)
seat	Tehran
appointer	Assembly of Experts
termlength	Life tenure
constituting_instrument	Constitution of Iran
precursor	Shah of Iran
formation	5 February 1979 as Revolutionary Leader
3 December 1979 as Supreme Leader
first	Ruhollah Khomeini
unofficial_names	Revolutionary Leader from 5 February 1979 until 3 December 1979
deputy	Office was not established until 15 July 1985
Grand Ayatollah Hussein-Ali Montazeri (15 July 1985 – 25 April 1989)
Office abolished since 25 April 1989
website

رهبر جمهوری اسلامی ایران Commander-in-chief Provisional head of the three branches of the state (the Judiciary, the Legislature, and the Executive) House of Leadership (present) 3 December 1979 as Supreme Leader Grand Ayatollah Hussein-Ali Montazeri (15 July 1985 – 25 April 1989) Office abolished since 25 April 1989 The Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic of Iran, also referred to as the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution, but officially called the supreme leadership authority, is the de facto head of state and the highest political and religious authority of Iran (above the president). The armed forces, judiciary, state radio and television, and other key government organizations such as the Guardian Council and Expediency Discernment Council are subject to the supreme leader. According to the constitution, the supreme leader delineates the general policies of the Islamic Republic (article 110), supervising the legislature, the judiciary, and the executive branches (article 57). The current lifetime officeholder, Ali Khamenei, has issued decrees and made the final decisions on the economy, the environment, foreign policy, education, national planning, and other aspects of governance in Iran. Khamenei also makes the final decisions on the amount of transparency in elections, and has dismissed and reinstated presidential cabinet appointees.

The office was established by the Constitution of Iran in 1979, pursuant to Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini's concept of the Guardianship of the Islamic Jurist, and is a lifetime appointment. Originally the constitution required the supreme leader to be Marja'-e taqlid, the highest-ranking cleric in the religious laws of Usuli Twelver Shia Islam. In 1989, however, the constitution was amended and simply asked for Islamic "scholarship" to allow the supreme leader to be a lower-ranking cleric."Article 109 [Leadership Qualifications]

(1) Following are the essential qualifications and conditions for the Leader:

a. Scholarship, as required for performing the functions of the religious leader in different fields. The style "Supreme Leader" () is commonly used as a sign of respect although the Constitution designates them simply as "Leader" (رهبر, fa). According to the constitution (Article 111), the Assembly of Experts is tasked with electing (following Ayatollah Khomeini), supervising, and dismissing the supreme leader. In practice, the Assembly has never been known to challenge or otherwise publicly oversee any of the supreme leader's decisions Members of the Assembly are elected by people in elections, and are approved by bodies (the Guardian Council) whose members are appointed by the supreme leader or appointed by an individual (Chief Justice of Iran) appointed by the supreme leader. The United Nations list of Heads of State, Heads of Government, and Ministers for Foreign Affairs of all Member States lists the president as the official de jure head of state and government, rather than the supreme leader himself.

In its history, the Islamic Republic of Iran has had only two supreme leaders: Khomeini, who held the position from 1979 until his death in 1989 and Ali Khamenei, who has held the position for more than 35 years since Khomeini's death.

Mandate and status

The supreme leader of Iran is elected by the Assembly of Experts (), which is also the only government body in charge of choosing and dismissing supreme leaders of Iran.

The supreme leader is the commander-in-chief of the armed forces and the head of the three branches of the state (the Judiciary, the Legislature, and the Executive).

He oversees, appoints (or inaugurates) and can dismiss the following offices:

Organization	Activity	Ref
Supreme National Security Council (SNSC)	Two personal representative. Body for national security and foreign policy discussions, including nuclear policy.	title=Institute for the Study of War	url=http://dev-isw.bivings.com/	access-date=2025-06-25	website=Institute for the Study of War	language=en	archive-date=2022-03-25	archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220325065358/https://www.understandingwar.org/backgrounder/russian-offensive-campaign-assessment-march-24	url-status=dead }}
Islamic Republic of Iran Armed Forces
Chief Justice of Iran	Head of the Judiciary Branch (usually a member of the Assembly of Experts) for a term of 8 years
Director of Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting	Irans national news broadcaster
Supreme Council of the Cultural Revolution	Body that works "to ensure that the education and culture of Iran remains Islamic.
Expediency Discernment Council	Set up to resolve conflicts between the Guardian Council and the Parliament. Also advises the Supreme Leader
Head of the Foundation of Martyrs and Veterans Affairs	Nominated by the President and approved by the Leader.

Additional information:

Inaugurates the President and may also together with a two-thirds majority of the Parliament impeach him.
The 6 Faqih members of the 12 members of the Guardian Council, the other 6 are chosen by the Parliament out of jurist candidates nominated by the Chief Justice of Iran who is in turn appointed by the supreme leader.
Can delegate representatives to all branches of government, which as of 2018 were around 2000 representatives.
the Imams of the Friday Prayer of each Province Capital (with the advice of all the Marja') for life

Iran's regional policy is directly controlled by the office of the supreme leader with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs' task limited to protocol and ceremonial occasions. All of Iran's ambassadors to Arab countries, for example, are chosen by the Quds Force, which directly reports to the supreme leader.

According to the constitution, all supreme leaders (following Ayatollah Khomeini) are to be elected by the Assembly of Experts who are elected by Iranian voters to eight-year terms. However, all candidates for membership at the Assembly of Experts (along with candidates for president and for the Majlis (parliament)) must have their candidacy approved by the Guardian Council (in 2016, 166 candidates were approved by the Guardians out of 801 who applied to run for the office), whose members in turn, are half appointed unilaterally by the supreme leader and half subject to confirmation by the Majlis after being appointed by the head of the Iranian judiciary (Chief Justice of Iran), who is himself appointed by the supreme leader of Iran. The Assembly has never questioned the supreme leader. There have been cases where the Guardian Council repealed its ban on particular people after being directed to do so by Khamenei.

The supreme leader is legally considered "inviolable", with Iranians being routinely punished for questioning or insulting him.

Incorporation in the constitution

1979

In March 1979, shortly after Ruhollah Khomeini's return from exile and the overthrow of Iran's monarchy, a national referendum was held throughout Iran with the question "Islamic Republic, yes or no?". Although some groups objected to the wording and choice and boycotted the referendum, 98% of those voting voted "yes". In the work, Khomeini argued that government must be run in accordance with traditional Islamic sharia, and for this to happen a leading Islamic jurist (faqih) must provide political "guardianship" (wilayat or velayat) over the people. The leading jurist were known as Marja'.

The Constitution stresses the importance of the clergy in government, with Article 4 stating that all civil, criminal, financial, economic, administrative, cultural, military, political, and all other statutes and regulations (must) be keeping with Islamic measures;…the Islamic legal scholars of the watch council (Shura yi Nigahban) will keep watch over this. and the importance of the supreme leader. Article 5 states

during the absence of the removed Twelfth Imam (may God hasten his reappearance) government and leadership of the community in the Islamic Republic of Iran belong to the rightful God fearing legal scholar (Faqih) who is recognized and acknowledged as the Islamic leader by the majority of the population.

Article 107 in the constitution mentions Khomeini by name and praises him as the most learned and talented leader for emulation (marja-i taqlid). The responsibilities of the supreme leader are vaguely stated in the constitution, thus any 'violation' by the supreme leader would be dismissed almost immediately. As the rest of the clergy governed affairs on a daily basis, the supreme leader is capable of mandating a new decision as per the concept of Vilayat-e Faqih.

The supreme leader does not receive a salary.

1989

Shortly before Khomeini's death a change was made in the constitution of Iran allowing a lower ranking Shia cleric to become the supreme leader. Khomeini had a falling out with his would-be successor Hussein-Ali Montazeri who disapproved of human rights abuses by the Islamic Republic such as the mass execution of political prisoners in late summer and early autumn 1988. Montazeri was demoted as a marja and Khomeini chose a new successor, a relatively low-ranking member of the clergy, Ali Khamene'i. However Article 109 stipulated that the leader be "a source of imitation" (Marja-e taqlid). Khomeini wrote a letter to the president of the Assembly for Revising the Constitution, which was in session at the time, making the necessary arrangements to designate Khamene'i as his successor, and Article 109 was revised accordingly. "Khomeini is supposed to have written a letter to the Chairman of the assembly of Leadership Experts on 29.4.89 in which he emphasised that he had always been of the opinion that the marja'iyat was not a requirement for the office of leader."

Guardianship of the Islamic Jurist (Velayat-e faqih)

Main article: Guardianship of the Islamic Jurist

The constitution of Iran combines concepts of both democracy and theocracy, theocracy in the form of Khomeini's concept of vilayat-e faqih (Guardianship of the Islamic Jurist), as expressed in the Islamic Republic. According to Ayatollah Khomeini, the Guardianship of the Islamic Jurist was not restricted to orphans or mental incompetents, but applied to everyone in absence of the twelfth Imam. Jurists were the only rightful political/governmental leaders because "God had commanded Islamic government" and "no one knew religion better than the ulama" (Islamic clergy). Prior to the revolution, observant Shia Muslims selected their own leading faqih to emulate (known as a Marja'-i taqlid) according to their own decision making. The "congregation rather than the hierarchy decided how prominent the ayatollah was" thus allowing the public to possibly limit the influence of the Faqih.

After the revolution Shia Muslims (or at least Iranian Shia) were commanded to show allegiance to the current vali-e faghih, Guardian Jurist or Supreme Leader. In this new system, the jurist oversaw all governmental affairs. The complete control exercised by the Faqih was not to be limited to the Iranian Revolution because the revolution and its Leader had international aspirations. As the constitution of the Islamic Republic states, it

intends to establish an ideal and model society on the basis of Islamic norms. ... the Constitution provides the necessary basis for ensuring the continuation of the Revolution at home and abroad. In particular, in the development of international relations, the Constitution will strive with other Islamic and popular movements to prepare the way for the formation of a single world community (in accordance with the Koranic verse 'This your community is a single community, and I am your Lord, so worship Me' [21:92]), and to assure the continuation of the struggle for the liberation of all deprived and oppressed peoples in the world.

According to author Seyyed Vali Nasr, Khomeini appealed to the masses, during the pre-1979 period, by referring to them as the oppressed and with charisma and political ability was tremendously successful. He became a very popular role model for Shiites and hoped for the Iranian Revolution to be the first step to a much larger Islamic revolution, transcending Shia Islam, in the same way that Vladimir Lenin and Leon Trotsky had wanted their revolution to be a world revolution, not just a Russian one.

Functions, powers, and duties of the supreme leader

Duties and Powers given to the supreme leader by the Constitution, decrees and other laws are:

Delineation of the general policies of the Islamic Republic of Iran in consultation with the Nation's Expediency Discernment Council.
Supervision over the proper execution of the general policies of the systems.
Resolving conflicts between the three branches of the government
Issuing decrees for national referendums.
Supreme command over the Armed Forces.
Declaration of war and peace, and the mobilization of the armed forces.
Ability to veto laws passed by the parliament.
Appointment, dismissal, and acceptance of resignation of:
the members of Expediency Discernment Council.
the members of Supreme Council of the Cultural Revolution.
two personal representatives to the Supreme National Security Council.
Can delegate representatives to all branches of government. Ali Khamenei has currently around 2000 representatives.
the six fuqaha' of the Guardian Council.
the supreme judicial authority of the country.
ministers of defense, intelligence, foreign affairs, and science.
the head of the radio and television network of the Islamic Republic of Iran.
the chief of the joint staff.
the chief commander of the armed forces of the country
the highest commanders of the armed forces.
Can dismiss and reinstate ministers.
Resolving differences between the three wings of the armed forces and regulation of their relations.
Resolving the problems, which cannot be solved by conventional methods, through the Nation's Expediency Discernment Council.
Signing the decree formalizing the elections in Iran for the President of the Republic by the people.
Dismissal of the President of the Republic, with due regard for the interests of the country, after the Supreme Court holds him guilty of the violation of his constitutional duties, or after an impeachment vote of the Islamic Consultative Assembly (Parliament) testifying to his incompetence on the basis of Article 89 of the Constitution.
Pardoning or reducing the sentences of convicts, within the framework of Islamic criteria, on a recommendation (to that effect) from the head of the Judiciary. The supreme leader may delegate part of his duties and powers to another person.
Confirms decisions of the Supreme National Security Council.
Control over Special Clerical Court.

List of supreme leaders

No.	Portrait	Name
(English · Persian)	Term of office	Signature	Lifespan	Presidents	Place of birth	Political party	Notes	Took office	Left office	Time in office	1	2
[[File:Portrait of Ruhollah Khomeini.jpg	100px]]	Seyyed
Ruhollah Khomeini
3 December 1979	3 June 1989		[[File:Ruhollah Khomeini signature.svg	80x80px]]	or – 3 June 1989 (aged 86 or 89)	{{Collapsible list	List:}}	Abolhassan Banisadr	Mohammad-Ali Rajai	Ali Khamenei	Khomeyn, Markazi Province		Leader of the 1979 Iranian Revolution, and founder of the Islamic Republic of Iran.
[[File:Meeting of the families of the martyrs of the authority with the Leader of the Revolution on the birthday of Amir al-Mu'minin (peace be upon him) 58 (khamenei.ir, 2026) (cropped 3).jpg	100px]]	Seyyed
Ali Khamenei
6 August 1989	Incumbent		[[File:Ali Khamenei signature.svg	80x80px]]		{{Collapsible list	List:}}	Himself	Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani	Mohammad Khatami	Mahmoud Ahmadinejad	Hassan Rouhani	Ebrahim Raisi	Mohammad Mokhber (acting)	Masoud Pezeshkian}}	Mashhad, Razavi Khorasan Province	Previously served as President of Iran from 1981 until Khomeini's death.

Timeline

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TextData = pos:(20,45) textcolor:black fontsize:M text:"Legend:"

BarData = bar:Khomeini bar:Khamenei

PlotData = width:5 align:left fontsize:S shift:(5,-4) anchor:till

bar:Khomeini from: 03/12/1979 till: 03/06/1989 color:Past text:"Ruhollah Khomeini" bar:Khamenei from: 03/06/1989 till: $today color:Present text:"Ali Khamenei"

Vice Supreme Leader

The role of the Iranian vice supreme leader (deputy supreme leader) was eventually incorporated into the authority of the supreme leader.

Ayatollah Hussein-Ali Montazeri (10 November 1985 – 13 March 1989)

During the presidency of Hassan Rouhani and amid longstanding rumors of Khamenei's declining health, it was recommended to Khamenei to reestablish the office of deputy supreme leader to better facilitate the transition to new leadership.

Future leader

Notes

References

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They alone would preserve "Islamic order" and keep everyone from deviating from "the just path of Islam".Khomeini, ''Islam and Revolution, Writings and Declarations Of Imam Khomeini'' p.54
Nasr, Seyyed Vali Reza, ''The Shia Revival: How Conflicts within Islam Will Shape the Future'', W. W. Norton & Company, Apr 17, 2007, p.?
Nasr, Seyyed Vali Reza, ''The Shia Revival: How Conflicts within Islam Will Shape the Future'', W. W. Norton & Company, Apr 17, 2007, p.137
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اسلامی, مرکز اسناد انقلاب. (August 16, 2020). "آیت‌الله منتظری چگونه قائم مقام شد؟".
"تایید خبر پیشنهاد قائم مقام برای خامنه‌ای "از طرف نزدیکان روحانی"".

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