Hassan Khomeini, the grandson of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, is preparing to enter Iranian politics, according to reports from people with close ties to the family. Khomeini, whose grandfather founded the Islamic Republic, plans to run in the forthcoming elections for the Assembly of Experts, which are due to take place on February 26, 2016. The Assembly of Experts is responsible for selecting and supervising the Supreme Leader. Its members are elected by direct popular vote for a term of eight years.
This is the first time Hassan Khomeini has formally entered politics, though he has commanded influence behind the scenes for the last decade, part of a circle of powerful political figures that includes former presidents Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani and Mohammad Khatami, former speaker of the parliament Ali Akbar Nateq-Nouri, who currently heads up the Supreme Leader’s Inspection Office, and more recently, President Hassan Rouhani himself. The group, which includes both reformists and conservatives, is considered to be one of the most influential reformist power bases in Iranian politics today.
Reformists will welcome Khomeini’s entrance on to the political scene, not least because some of the movement’s key players have been plagued by scandals and direct attacks from hardliners — the jailing of Rafsanjani’s son was widely seen as an overt attack on the influential family. Former president Mohammad Khatami has suffered from an absence from public life because of banning orders on the media forbidding the publication of any photographs of him. His political party, the Association of Combatant Clerics, is most closely aligned with President Rouhani, who has of course sustained a number of attacks from hardliners since his election to the presidency in 2013. Now Hassan Khomeini could potentially act as a savior for the reformist movement.
Khomeini’s candidacy for the Assembly of Experts will boost the wider reformist agenda, bolstering support for reformist candidates in the parliamentary elections, which are also due to take place on the same date.
And of course, Khomeini’s political intentions are important for the family as a whole, signalling its long-awaited return back into the political scene. After the death of Hassan's father Ahmad Khomeini in 1994, the Khomeini family gradually disappeared from politics. The return of the Khomeinis will also shift the balance when it comes to the future of the role of the Supreme Leader.
After the death of Ayatollah Khomeini in 1989, the mantle of the leadership was transferred to the family of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, though many in Iran would be happy to see it returned to the Khomeini family. Though many reformists welcome Hassan Khomeini’s political intentions, it is for this power struggle concerning the leadership that a number of reformists are also wary of these intentions. They have see Khomeini’s role as a religious authority as more important than any political influence he might have, in the Assembly of Experts or elsewhere — the influence he can have over the selection of the next Supreme Leader in particular.
But in reality, Khomeini’s candidacy for the Assembly will not have a profound effect on his religious authority, now or later. If he succeeds in the political arena, he will be well positioned for future challenges to reformist agendas, whatever the political or religious nature. One example is his relationship with Grand Ayatollah Abdollah Javadi-Amoli, a prominent moderate religious authority who some moderates view as a potential candidate for the next Supreme Leader. He regularly expresses views on politics, the economy and foreign policy, but he has no political or administrative experience. As Khomeini enters politics, while at the same time upholding his religious authority, a figure like Javadi-Amoli will only benefit from his close ties to him.
Hassan Khomeini is young, handsome and popular. His political and religious knowledge is extensive and up to date. He is savvy when it comes to public opinion and the media, and knows how to attract attention. In addition to his own website enjoying considerable traffic, he is regularly quoted in reformist publications. His family has consistently supported him, and the foundations and seminaries under his control in Tehran and Qom have expanded in recent years. Significantly, hardliners are very cautious when it comes to challenging him.
A Victory for Khomeini, A Victory for Reformists
When addressing the Iranian public, Hassan Khomeini has made it his business to present the values, policies, and characteristics associated with his grandfather, especially in recent years. In his sermons, he has adopted a fatherly style. Considering his family and its social credibility, perhaps he believes that playing a fatherly role is his birthright.
But this demeanor gives Iranian hardliners a good reason to be very worried. While moderates praise Hassan Khomeini as a “national treasure,” there can be no doubt that many hardliners detest him, referring to him with derogatory and condescending nicknames (including “Rosy-Chick Hassan”). They know all too well any victory for Hassan Khomeini would also be be a victory for reformists — “Seditionists” in hardliner speak.
Undoubtedly, some hardliners hope the influential Guardian Council will disqualify Khomeini from being a candidate for the Assembly of Experts. Over the past two months, a number of reformists have declared that since he is a teacher of Islamic jurisprudence, he does not have to pass the written test necessary to qualify for the elections. Hardliners have rejected this argument, insisting that every candidate must pass this test. If Khomeini is disqualified, the Iranian political arena will encounter serious political repercussions.
Ayatollah Khomeini’s other grandsons have faced disqualification from previous parliamentary elections — but Hassan Khomeini is a different story. He is a symbol of the Khomeini family, so his disqualification would lead to a veritable war, a serious division among the rulers of the Islamic Republic.
If Khomeini succeeds in becoming an assembly member for Tehran — Rafsanjani and Rouhani are also Tehran candidates — and if he secures a high number of votes, it will send a clear message about the power and resilience of the reformist movement in Iran.
This victory is not certain. But what is a given is that his candidacy has complicated an already fractious, complex political landscape. By entering into politics in a formal manner, Hassan Khomeini has placed a firm spotlight on some of the most divisive issues in Iran today, and no one — not the public, the political elite, or the media — can ignore him.
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