There have been only two supreme leaders since the job was created after the Iranian Revolution in 1979 for Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini. Now Iran has a third.
Mojtaba Khamenei, a 56-year-old politician, cleric and son of the previous supreme leader, was appointed to the role by a council of 88 clerics, known as the Assembly of Experts, according to a statement released early Monday morning local time.
As supreme leader, Mojtaba Khamenei becomes the head of state of the Islamic Republic of Iran, both a spiritual leader and the highest authority in the land. Under Iran’s Constitution, that gives him overarching control of Iran’s politics and its armed forces, as well as leadership in religious affairs.
The supreme leader takes a public stance on foreign policy and military affairs, as well as internal issues — including suppressing dissent.
He rules by issuing decrees, oversees government policy and makes all senior appointments including for the military, the judiciary and the head of the state broadcasting service. The supreme leader can also issue a fatwa, a nonbinding religious opinion on matters of religious and civil life that can carry weight far beyond Iran’s borders.
The role has changed over the years partly because of the differences of the men appointed.
Ayatollah Khomeini was an eminent religious scholar and political revolutionary who inspired a popular following and was a driver in establishing Iran’s theocracy on the principle that an expert in Islamic jurisprudence should oversee the government to ensure justice.
Yet when he died ten years later in 1989, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was less qualified as a religious scholar and did not command such a following among the faithful, was selected.
Iran’s Constitution was amended at the time of his selection to stipulate that the supreme leader only needed to show “Islamic scholarship.” He nevertheless was a Sayed, meaning he was from a family descended from Prophet Muhammad, and was accorded the title of Ayatollah with his appointment.
In his will and last word, Ayatollah Khomeini had set the tone for a transition, telling his people that their loyalty should be to the Islamic Republic. The state itself became the repository of spirituality and religion, said Vali Nasr, an expert on Iran and Shiite Islam at Johns Hopkins University.
“The office under Khamenei essentially became secular in its function,” Mr. Nasr said. “The state promoted him as a very distinguished cleric, but by no means was he recognized by the faithful as the pre-eminent Shia cleric,” such as the Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani of Iraq, Mr. Nasr said.
Ayatollah Khamenei ruled for more than 36 years until he was killed when the United States and Israel opened strikes on Iran on Saturday, Feb. 28. His legacy was of an authoritarian who sought to protect Shia communities abroad but brutally suppressed his own population.
His killing, perceived as martyrdom by the faithful, sparked anger and grief among many of the world’s more than 200 million Shiite Muslims, even while it was celebrated by the many who opposed his harsh rule.
Mojtaba Khamenei also does not have high religious standing, but was groomed for the position, serving in the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps, studying at a religious seminary and then working closely with his father.
His succession, following his father, marks a break from the meritocracy set by the Iranian revolution, which rejected the monarchy for the undemocratic nature of hereditary rule.
Yet he was considered a front-runner for the post because of the nature of his father’s death and his strong political and military connections, said Sanam Vakil, director of the Middle East and North Africa program at Chatham House, a London-based research group.
The office he inherits today draws its power from its political and military control.
The supreme leader is the commander in chief of Iran’s military forces and of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, a paramilitary force that has become the most powerful branch of the military and controls its ballistic missile arsenal.
Designated a terrorist group by the United States in 2019, the Revolutionary Guard is accused of sponsoring multiple proxy forces in countries across the Middle East to counter Israel and the United States.
Since they opened their military campaign, the U.S. and Israel have targeted bases of the Revolutionary Guard and other domestic security forces, hoping to shake the supreme leader’s hold on the country.
Iran has a nationally elected president who runs its administration. But even he is the second in command of the executive branch after the supreme leader.
The president appoints cabinet members, but they first have to be approved by parliament and the supreme leader. The president is elected to a four-year term and can only serve a maximum of two terms. His election is approved by the supreme leader.
The head of the judiciary is also appointed by the supreme leader. The judicial system in Iran is run by Shia clerics and all decisions must be in accordance with Islamic law, or Shariah. The penal code was rewritten after the 1979 revolution, and harsh punishments are imposed under Shariah including corporal punishments and executions.
None of the men considered contenders for supreme leader were highly ranked clerics, Mr. Nasr pointed out. Those selecting a new leader were most probably focused on continuity, he said.
“I don’t think anybody in Iran right now wants to do something that suggests that the system is breaking,” he said.
Mojtaba Khamenei was a leading contender because of the close connections forged working under his father, Ms. Vakil said.
“Because he’s deeply integrated into to the regime’s networks and he represents continuity, and he will be supported by Iran’s deep state,” she said. “He really will bring the support of elites, the security establishment, and the broad system. This is what he ultimately represents.”
Carlotta Gall is a senior correspondent, covering the war in Ukraine.
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