On February 21, 2020, Iran held a vote to elect its 11th parliament since the 1979 Islamic Revolution. Iran’s parliament, or Majlis, is primarily responsible for domestic affairs such as the country’s annual budget. While Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has the ultimate authority over Iran’s foreign relationships and its nuclear program, the Majlis has historically played an important, if limited, role in the country’s international affairs by, for example, approving the 2015 nuclear deal.
In the lead-up to the parliamentary election, the Guardian Council, the group tasked with deciding who will ultimately appear on the ballots, disqualified many pro-reform politicians. As a result, the vote largely leaves Iranian voters choosing from a pool of hardline and conservative candidates, many of whom have vowed to reverse the decisions made by President Hassan Rouhani. As such, the vote is expected to be a referendum on President Hassan Rouhani’s policies and economy and is likely to set the tone for next year’s presidential election.
