of a president is not really going to change the direction of the country. that is done by the supreme leader, at the moment ayatollah khamenei. so what do we know about the likely changes there? who will take over from khamenei? the list is very small. of course, it s pure speculation, because it s all very secretive. when khamenei was appointed the supreme leader, he wasn t the favourite. and khamenei only emerged because of backroom dealings amongst the clerical elite. and this could happen again. khamenei s second son, mojtaba, who is 55 years old, and he s avoided the limelight largely, but it s his belief that he has huge influence over his father s decision making, and he s also close to the irgc. but he doesn t have the religious credentials and he doesn t have any executive or governance
he has responsibility for the overall conduct of the country in religious, political and social matters. and he runs iran s foreign policy. plus, he has ultimate oversight of the powerful revolutionary guard corps, the irgc. this shows the real intensity of feeling. but some past presidential elections, like the one in 2009, which i covered, have seen anger and violence spill over on a national scale. and without the use of considerable force, the islamic regime might not even have survived. this election, though, could be marked by inertia, and lack of interest, like the last one in 2021, where the turnout was at a record low. i sought the views of baran abbasi of bbc persian on what we can expect. there is usually, on the basis of precedence, up to ten people would be allowed to run.
not a figure that would draw people to the polling stations. the majority of the people have been disillusioned with this regime. they have taken to the streets time and again asking for regime change. do khamenei, the other people that support him, do they really care if there s a low turnout? absolutely not. this was the case last time around. the election saw the lowest turnout in the history of the islamic republic. but it was not something that the irgc would care. and that s why ebrahim raisi was elected. he was a mid ranking cleric with no higher education. and he showed it in his speeches. he didn t have any genuine ideas himself. he only carried out the orders. and this was something that appealed to the irgc and the supreme leader. of course, i mean, this is weird, isn t it? because the election
to be allowed to run. maybe a low key moderate, not a figure that would draw people to the polling stations. the majority of the people have been disillusioned with this regime. they have taken to the streets time and again asking for regime change. do khamenei, the other people that support him, do they really care if there s a low turnout? absolutely not. this was the case last time around. the election saw the lowest turnout in the history of the islamic republic. but it was not something that the irgc would care. and that s why ebrahim raisi was elected. he was a mid ranking cleric with no higher education. and he showed it in his speeches. he didn t have any genuine ideas himself. he only carried out the orders. and this was something that appealed to the irgc and the supreme leader.
of course, i mean, this is weird, isn t it? because the election of a president is not really going to change the direction of the country. that is done by the supreme leader, at the moment ayatollah khamenei. so what do we know about the likely changes there? who will take over from khamenei? the list is very small. of course, it s pure speculation, because it s all very secretive. when khamenei was appointed the supreme leader, he wasn t the favourite. and khamenei only emerged because of backroom dealings amongst the clerical elite. and this could happen again. khamenei s second son, mojtaba, who is 55 years old, and he s avoided the limelight largely, but it s his belief that he has huge influence over his father s decision making, and he s also close to the irgc. but he doesn t have the religious credentials and he doesn t have any executive or governance background. there are concerns that,