ALBAWABA - Following the death of Iranian president Ebrahim Raisi and several other Iranian officials in a helicopter crash later in May, names of potential Iranian candidates who will be succeeding Raisi have been surfacing on various platforms.
Former presidents Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and Hassan Rouhani were among the names that were predicted to officially submit their candidacy for the upcoming presidential elections, which are set to take place on June 28th.
The date has been set after extensive meetings between heads of state, following the tragic helicopter accident that killed President Ebrahim Raisi, Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian in addition to several other officials as they were returning home from a state visit to Azerbaijan.
Raisi and the accompanying delegation were returning after taking part in an inauguration ceremony of a dam on the Iran-Azerbaijan border on Sunday when the crash took place, according to Iranian state broadcasters
Ali Larijani
Iranian Parliament Speaker Ali Larijani gives a press conference at the Iranian embassy in Lebanon. AFP / ANWAR AMRO
A former officer in the Revolutionary Guard Corps and former Speaker of the Parliament of Iran, Ali Larijani is considered one of the most qualified potential presidential candidates on the field in terms of the number of positions he has had in the years in Iran.
Larijani and Hassan Rouhani were the two delegates of Ali Khamenei, the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution, to the Supreme National Security Council.
He essentially served as the head negotiator on matters of national security, such as Iran's nuclear program, while holding the position of secretary. In addition, he currently serves on the Cultural Revolution's Supreme Council.
Saeed Jalili
Iran's presidential candidate Saeed Jalili addressing reporters. (Photo by MORTEZA FAKHRI NEZHAD / YJC NEWS AGENCY / AFP)
In 2002, Jalili was also appointed to the Supreme National Security Council. As deputy foreign minister for European and American relations, Jalili was appointed when Mahmoud Ahmadinejad became president in August 2005. His term ended in October 2007. He also acted as Ahmedinejad's counselor during that time.
As secretary of the council, Jalili took over from Ali Larijani on October 20, 2007, and he took on the role of coordinating discussions with other countries about Iran's nuclear program.
Hassan Rouhani
Shutterstock
Served as the President of The Islamic Republic of Iran from 2013 to 2021, Hassan Rouhani is a Sharia lawyer, academic scholar, former diplomat, and Islamic cleric. He was a member of Iran's Assembly of Experts from 1999 to 2024.
Rouhani is frequently described as a centrist and reformist. In domestic policy, he encourages personal freedom, and free access to information, and has improved women's rights by appointing female foreign ministry spokespeople.
Mahmoud Ahmadinejad
Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was Iran's president from 2005 to 2013, and he is currently a member of the Expediency Discernment Council.
Ahmadinejad was well-known for nuclearizing Iran and holding rigid political beliefs. In addition, he served as Tehran's mayor from 2003 to 2005, undoing many of the changes implemented by his predecessors. He was the principal political figurehead of the Alliance of Builders of Islamic Iran, a confederation of conservative political organizations in the nation.
