Following the deaths of Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi on Sunday alongside his Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian in a helicopter accident, speculation has run wild regarding the next step of governance for Iran.
The Iranian constitution stipulates that a temporary committee will assume the duties of the Iranian presidency, in the event that the Iranian president is unable to exercise his powers for a period of two months for any reason.
Under Article 131, a committee will assume the duties of the president in the event of his death, absence, or illness for a period exceeding two months, or in the event that the president’s term expires and a new president is not elected.
The Iranian Vice President, with the approval of the Iranian Supreme Leader, chaired a committee that includes the Speaker of Parliament and the Head of the Judiciary.
The Vice President will be obligated to organize presidential elections within 50 days.
According to Article 131, the Supreme Leader of Iran can personally assume all the powers of the President directly, or assign a new official, if the Vice President is unable to exercise his powers in the required manner.
Article 113 of the Iranian Constitution says that the Iranian President is the highest official in the country after the Supreme Leader, and bears responsibility for implementing the Constitution and heading the executive branch (the government), with the exception of issues related to the Supreme Leader.
Iran previously faced this situation after the removal of former President Abolhassan Banisadr, who was dismissed by the first Supreme Leader, Khomeini, on charges of betraying the principles of the Iranian revolution.
A Helicopter, part of the Iranian President’s convoy, which consisted of three aircraft, was involved in an accident on Sunday according to Iranian official television.
The television also added that the accident occurred in the Julfa region in East Azerbaijan Province, adding that the helicopter carrying Raisi made an “emergency landing”.
Iranian television officially announced the deaths of Raisi and his foreign minister on Monday after a night of searching for the wreckage in northwestern Iran, which was hampered by difficult weather conditions.
