Iran’s hard-liners in tug of war over parliament speakership
A battle for the speaker’s seat appears to be the opening episode of a fresh round of infighting among Iran’s hard-liners after their victory in a one-sided parliamentary election.
![1192349417 This handout picture provided by the Islamic Consultative Assembly News Agency (ICANA) on January 7, 2020 shows Iranian lawmakers raising their hands to vote during a parliamentary session in Tehran. - Iran's parliament passed a bill designating all US forces "terrorists" over the killing of a top Iranian military commander in a US strike last week. Under the newly adopted bill, all US forces and employees of the Pentagon and affiliated organisations, agents and commanders and those who ordered the "martyrd](/sites/default/files/styles/article_hero_medium/public/almpics/2020/04/GettyImages-1192349417.jpg/GettyImages-1192349417.jpg?h=a5ae579a&itok=C26nm_v8)
Iran's new parliament, which is to be inaugurated May 28, is seeing an spirited battle between a number of lawmakers seeking to occupy the speaker's post.
For 12 consecutive years, Ali Larijani maintained a tight grip on the position, earning the title of Iran’s longest-serving speaker. However, the influential politician decided not to run for the new parliament, triggering speculation that he will run in the 2021 presidential election.