Scholars such as Said Amir Arjomand and Daniel Brumberg have published masterly overviews of Iranian institutions and politics. Yet these and other studies tend either to be rather general – about the system of power and dual leadership – or focused on a limited period of time. Therefore, Siavush Randjbar-Daemi's book on the history of the Iranian presidency from its establishment in 1979 to the present certainly makes a new contribution to the field. The book is the first to focus entirely on the history of the presidential office in Iran, while also analyzing its evolution over a wide period of time.
The Quest for Authority in Iran follows a chronological and thematic approach, tracing the ascent of each Iranian president, his struggle to acquire authority, and the constant effort required to fend off various challenges to his power from within Iran's political system. Randjbar-Daemi argues that these power struggles between presidents and other political actors are due primarily to institutional limitations. For example, the elected president must be approved by an unelected faqih (jurist) and is thus subordinated to a religious authority. Through this comprehensive approach, the author is then able to assess the nature of power and authority in contemporary Iran and distinguish between the proclivities of chap (left) and rast (right) – i.e. reformist and conservative – political parties. Although perhaps an easier reading grid for the western reader, it can also be misleading for the Iranian system is not built around these categories: a conservative (rast) can also be a revolutionary in Iran.
The essential argument presented in The Quest for Authority is the fact that the exact positioning of the presidency within the state system remains a contested issue. Struggles over the redefinition and reconfiguration of the presidency's authority are constant. Despite this, the presidency has never been reduced to a ceremonial role because of the national election every four years. The presidency has to secure “the informal backing” (267), including that of the Supreme Leader, and the support of a majority of voters.
Relying on a considerable number of primary sources (e.g. Friday prayers and public speeches, memoirs and specific press articles), Randjbar-Daemi addresses in great detail the tenures of the successive presidents of the Islamic Republic, focusing on their relationship with the Supreme Leader, who constrained their authority, and on the Majles (Islamic Consultative Assembly or Iranian Parliament). He begins the analysis of each presidential tenure with a political biography of the office holder. His analyses of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and Hassan Rouhani's political careers are particularly informative. For instance, Randjbar-Daemi explains that Rouhani became interested in the nuclear issue in 1979 and was active in military affairs, such as the army's reform under Mehdi Bazargan's cabinet in 1979.
As Randjbar-Daemi shows, the introduction of the presidential institution in the Constitution of 1979 marked a complete innovation in the country's history. But it led to continuous repeated crises within the executive branch (Ch. 1). For example, the first president Abdolhassan Bani-Sadr had no real political power, his relations with Prime Minister Rajai were contentious, and he did not finish his mandate after an urgent motion encouraged by Khomeini was introduced in the Majles to weaken his power (Ch. 2). The crisis resulted in the reinforcement of the position of the president under Khamenei's presidency (1981-1988), and the revision of the Constitution in 1989 eliminated the Prime Minister's position, most of whose powers were transferred to the presidency (Chs. 3 and 4).
This revision led to the rise of Hashemi Rafsanjani (1989-1997), who was close to both Khomeini and Khamenei. To consolidate the Islamic Republic and aggrandize his authority, Rafsanjani placed economic development (sazandegi) above the resolution of deep political differences. As a result, factional fault lines and divisions within political elites remained significant (Chs. 5 and 6).
By contrast, Mohammad Khatami (1997-2005) advocated for eslah – reform from above and within the political system – as a way to reinforce his authority. Randjbar-Daemi appropriately argues that he failed because of “his institutional positioning and authority within the state system” and because he favored “intra-elite stability” (120). Khatami did not adopt the confrontational approach necessary for executing his agenda in the face of a conservative establishment. His tenure therefore weakened the presidential institution. Yet, Khatami's time in office was a pivotal moment in its evolution: it modified the relationship between state and society, through the emergence of numerous new media sources, NGOs, Internet-based opposition tactics, and increased interaction with the West, which he supported (Chs. 7 and 8).
By contrast, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad (2005-2013) refused to engage with the established political factions and brought the intra-elite balance of forces to an end. He propelled the presidency to the forefront of the decision-making process. Foreign policy became a way for him to extend and consolidate his authority. However, it did not bring an end to long-standing institutional tension. The struggle for political authority took on a new dimension in June 2009 as the system was challenged from below: large-scale political demonstrations contested the re-election of Ahmadinejad, resulting in a deep internal crisis. Nonetheless, Green Movement leader Mir-Hossein Mousavi and the oppositionist presidential candidate Mehdi Karroubi did not want to separate themselves from the system, and thus authority ultimately still resided in Khamenei's hands (Chs. 9, 10, and 11).
Most recently, Hassan Rouhani's rise to the presidency marked yet another shift: he attempted to transform the presidency into an institution that would resolve the country's deep social problems. But factional attacks against the president have persisted. The author concludes that these continued attacks show that the presidency has indeed transformed into a central place of contestation and dispute (Ch. 12).
Many academic books have been dedicated to the history of Iranian state institutions, including the office of the presidency. Yet, the singularity of Randjbar-Daemi's approach lies in his effort to bring important and heretofore unexplored materials to light. For instance, Rafsanjani's Friday prayer on July 2009 after Ahmadinejad's reelection and his public acknowledgment that the system faced a crisis is clarifying for the reader who can assess dissent within the state system. The author's study of numerous important primary Persian-language sources, sometimes difficult to access, makes his work very valuable. The Quest for Authority in Iran is a chronicle of Iranian political life. For this reason, this book is essential for scholars, postgraduates and students working on the history of contemporary Iran; the non-academic reader who is interested in Iranian politics and institutions will also find it illuminating and helpful.
