Does Khamenei Have A Favored Candidate?
The perception of being Khamenei's candidate could mean 12 million votes in Iran’s presidential election.
Until recently — and perhaps still — the dominant Western narrative of the Iranian presidential election was that the candidates are vying for the supreme leader's rather than people’s support. The underlying assumption is that candidates seek Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s approval, as he supposedly decides who’s going to be the next president.
While it is true that all candidates emphasize their commitment to the leader, there is a need to understand the varied reasons for this.
For hopefuls such as Tehran Mayor Mohammad-Bagher Ghalibaf and Reformist Mohammad-Reza Aref, the objective is to ease suspicions among powerful conservatives about their loyalty to the nezaam, or system.
Other candidates have gone beyond emphasizing mere loyalty to the supreme leader and have sought to portray themselves as his favored candidate. Why? What is the motivation for trying to create the image of being Khamenei’s favorite?
