Like Father Like Son? Iranians are Rejecting Both |
Foreign Policy > Iran
Like Father Like Son? Iranians are Rejecting Both
Can political legitimacy be inherited?
Nasser Razii | June 8, 2026
In 1978, I left Iran for Britain to pursue my studies. Like countless young Iranians at the time, I believed that the movement then sweeping across Iran would open the way to freedom, political pluralism, and accountable government. Nearly half a century later, Iran once again finds itself confronting a question many believed the 1979 revolution was meant to settle forever: can political legitimacy be inherited?
Recent reports indicating that Mojtaba Khamenei has been selected to succeed his father as Supreme Leader have brought one of the Islamic Republic’s deepest contradictions into sharp focus. For nearly five decades, the regime has justified its existence as a rejection of hereditary rule. Yet power now appears to have passed from father to son under a system that was founded on the promise of ending dynastic politics.
The circumstances surrounding Mojtaba Khamenei’s emergence only deepen the uncertainty. He has not appeared publicly, nor has he issued a video or audio message since reports of his selection emerged earlier this year. Various reports have suggested that he may have been injured during recent attacks, although the extent of any injuries remains unclear. Whatever the reality of his condition, the larger issue remains unchanged: after decades of repression, corruption, economic decline, and international isolation, are Iranians prepared to accept another form of inherited rule?
When millions of Iranians took to the streets in 1979, they rejected more than a particular ruler. They rejected the notion........