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2 results

Presidential Elections in Iran
  • Islamic Idealism since the Revolution
  • Mahmoud Pargoo, Shahram Akbarzadeh
  • Published online:
    11 May 2021
    Print publication:
    06 May 2021
  • The dominant narrative of Iranian society and politics heralds the reformist movement as the epitome of Iran's transition to secularity, while conservative political forces are positioned as advocates of Islamization and a bulwark against secularization. Examining all the presidential elections since the revolution, Mahmoud Pargoo and Shahram Akbarzadeh argue that in contrast, political and cultural imagination and expectations in Iran have actually secularized regardless of the reformist/conservative divide. Exploring the evolution of campaign discourses from the 1980s elections which brought Abolhassan Banisadr, Mohammad-Ali Rajai and Ali Khamenei to power, to the more recent campaigns of Mohamad Khatami, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and Hassan Rouhani, this book suggests that current debates in Iranian domestic politics are not between secularists and their opponents, but rather, between different kinds of secular forces.

  • 4 - Ahmadinejad and Secularisation: Rupture or Continuity?

  • Mahmoud Pargoo, Deakin University, Victoria, Shahram Akbarzadeh, Deakin University, Victoria
  • Book:
    Presidential Elections in Iran
    Published online:
    11 May 2021
    Print publication:
    06 May 2021, pp 106-133

  • Summary

    Chapter 4 examines the 2005 and 2009 elections, which brought conservative hardliner Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to power. In a similar vein to the previous chapter, it is argued here that, although conservatives stand in opposition to reformists, they are no less secularized than the latter. Surprisingly, and in contrast to the dominant narrative, Ahmadinejad’s 2005 election campaign was not centered on revolutionary values, such as obedience to the Leader, jihad and an ascetic Marxism. While the election was a victory for the conservatives, it did not usher in a return to early revolutionary values. As this chapter will demonstrate, during this period the social and political mindset of Iranians and their values changed tremendously, and domestic politics gradually become indifferent to religion. Significantly, the introduction of televised presidential election debates saw candidates cross many redlines and break many political and religious taboos.