The Iran Novin Party (Persian: حزب ایران نوین, romanizedḤezb-e Īrān-e Novīn, lit.'New Iran Party') was a royalist political party in Iran and the country's ruling party for more than a decade, controlling both cabinet and the parliament from 1964 to 1975. The People's Party was regarded as its main opposition.[3]

New Iran Party
حزب ایران نوین
FounderHassan Ali Mansour
Founded15 December 1963
Dissolved2 March 1975
Preceded byNationalists' Party[1]
Merged intoRastakhiz Party[2]
Worker wingWorker House (1967–75)
IdeologyRoyalism
Political positionRight-wing

The party was "indistinguishable from the state", i.e. a party of power, with no coherent ideology or agenda.[4] It was the main reason to deny opportunities to seek a popular following through nationalist or socialist appeals, although its pragmatism and opportunism were advantageous in recruiting.[5]

It comprised technocrats and former civil servants; supported the Court (probably having been initiated by it), identifying with the policies of the Shah[6] and self-proclaimed its role as "guardian" of the White Revolution (Pāsdār-e Enqelāb).[5] This party was active from 1963 to 1975. In 1975, the Shah ordered the dissolution of all parties. According to the order of Mohammad Reza Shah, all parties should be merged into a single party called Rastakhiz Party.[7][8] Some time after the 1979 revolution, Mohammad Reza Shah wrote in his book Answer to History that the dissolution of parties was a wrong move.[9] Hassan Ali Mansour and Amir-Abbas Hoveyda were two of the most famous leaders of this party.

Electoral history

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Legislature

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Election Party leader Parliament Senate
Seats +/− Pos Seats +/− Pos
1963 Hassan Ali Mansur
140 / 200
  1st[10] Un­known   1st
1967 Amir-Abbas Hoveyda
180 / 219
  40 1st[10]
26 / 30
Un­known 1st
1971
230 / 268
  50 1st[10]
28 / 30
  2 1st

Local councils

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Election Seats Pos
1968
806 / 1,068
1st[11]
1970
838 / 943
1st[12]
1972
3,246 / 3,786
1st[13]

Leadership

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Secretaries-General
Name Tenure Ref
Hassan Ali Mansur 1963–1965
Ataollah Khosravani 1965–1969
Manouchehr Kalali 1969–1974
Amir-Abbas Hoveyda 1974–1975

References

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  1. ^ Abrahamian, Ervand (1982). Iran Between Two Revolutions. Princeton University Press. pp. 440. ISBN 978-0-691-10134-7.
  2. ^ John H. Lorentz (2010). "Rastakhiz Party". The A to Z of Iran. The A to Z Guide Series. Vol. 209. Scarecrow Press. pp. 266–268. ISBN 978-1461731917.
  3. ^ Houchang E. Chehabi (1990). Iranian Politics and Religious Modernism: The Liberation Movement of Iran Under the Shah and Khomeini. I.B.Tauris. p. 39. ISBN 978-1850431985.
  4. ^ Yom, Sean (2015). From Resilience to Revolution: How Foreign Interventions Destabilize the Middle East. Columbia University Press. p. 138. ISBN 9780231540278.
  5. ^ a b Marvin G. Weinbaum (subscription required) (Autumn 1973). "Iran Finds a Party System: The Institutionalization of "Iran Novin"". Middle East Journal. 27 (4). Middle East Institute: 439–455. JSTOR 4325140.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  6. ^ P. Bearman, Th. Bianquis, C.E. Bosworth, E. van Donzel, W.P. Heinrichs (1986). "Mad̲j̲lis". In W. Madelung; Rahman, Munibur; Landau, J. M.; Yapp, M.E.; Robinson, F.C.R. (eds.). Encyclopaedia of Islam. Vol. 5 (Second ed.). Leiden, Netherlands: Brill. doi:10.1163/1573-3912_islam_COM_0606. ISBN 9789004161214.{{cite encyclopedia}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  7. ^ "Interview with Nahavandi, Houshang: Tape 05".
  8. ^ John H. Lorentz (2010). "Rastakhiz Party". The A to Z of Iran. The A to Z Guide Series. Vol. 209. Scarecrow Press. pp. 266–268. ISBN 978-1461731917.
  9. ^ Pahlavi, Mohammad Reza.(1980) Answer to history. Stein & Day Pub. United Kingdom. ISBN 0-8128-2755-4.
  10. ^ a b c Nohlen, Dieter; Grotz, Florian; Hartmann, Christof (2001). "Iran". Elections in Asia: A Data Handbook. Vol. I. Oxford University Press. p. 74. ISBN 0-19-924958-X.
  11. ^ Dishon, Daniel (1973), Middle East Record, vol. 4, John Wiley & Sons, p. 484, ISBN 9780470216118
  12. ^ Dishon, Daniel, ed. (1977), Middle East Record: 1969–1970, vol. 5, Israel Oriental Society, Reuven Shiloah Research Center, pp. 682–684, ISBN 9780470216118
  13. ^ Mehrdad, Hormoz (1980). Political orientations and the style of intergroup leadership interactions: the case of Iranian political parties (PDF) (PhD thesis). Ohio State University. p. 303. S2CID 148645507. osu1487090992443849. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2019-12-20.
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Ruling party of Iran
Preceded by Iran Novin Party
1963–1975
Succeeded by