Following the 1979 Islamic revolution in Iran, analysts and pundits started to explore the intera... more Following the 1979 Islamic revolution in Iran, analysts and pundits started to explore the interaction of religion and politics in Iran. They examined the role of religion in mobilizing the masses, the guardianship of jurists, the components of theocracy in Iran and its implications for policymaking. Despite these scholarly efforts, the relationship between religion and ideology have been relatively overlooked. This chapter aims to explain the origin of a Shia political ideology in Iran. It examines how a Shia political ideology emerged from of traditional Shia thoughts by reviewing the ebbs of flows of this journey in Iran's modern era. In answering this question, the chapter demonstrates the impact of ideas, factional interests, and transnational forces on the rise of Shia political ideology in modern Iran. It argues that in pre-revolutionary time, the ideas particularly a leftist reading of the history of Islam laid the ground for the rise of a Shia political ideology. In the post-revolutionary time, however, policymaking, factional competition contributed to the evolution of Shia ideology, and in post 9/11, transnational and regional power struggle impacted the ideological choice of Iranian ruling elites.
The paper uncovers determinants of turnout in Iran by studying the role of institutional and soci... more The paper uncovers determinants of turnout in Iran by studying the role of institutional and socio-economic variables in parliamentary politics since the 2000s. The paper argues that Iran’s electoral system has dichotomized the pattern of participation between center and periphery. The dynamic of participation in the center stems primarily from national shifts in the factional rule. However, in provincial peripheries, Iran’s electoral system promotes the personal particularistic demands of voters in the MP-citizen linkage. In this environment, the discretionary power of local state machinery over the daily lives of provincial citizens lays the ground for the role of local bureaus to influence participation. This argument draws on statistical analysis of parliamentary turnout and the study of several Iranian newspapers and official reports. The findings of the paper suggest a new mechanism by which institutional settings may shape the pattern of participation more generally. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11109-020-09605-6
The article examines the impact of an unsettled electoral market and evolving political predispos... more The article examines the impact of an unsettled electoral market and evolving political predispositions on the rise and fall of populism in Iran. The article argues that the absence of a polarized electoral contest between reformists and conservatives paved the way for the victory of the populist candidate in the 2005 presidential election in Iran, while the deep economic recession resulting from conservative administration policies created a long-term political experience which influenced voters and led to the victory of the pragmatist candidate in the 2013 and 2017 elections. Quantitative analysis indicates that in the 2005 election, the struggle between conservatives and reformists did not impact the competition between candidates, and consequently depoliticized attitudes, for example distributive demands, ideology, and anti-ruling elite sentiment gained significance, whereas polarization between conservatives and a coalition of reformists and pragmatists enhanced the role of partisanship and triggered the fall of populism in the 2013 election. https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/13510347.2019.1573815?journalCode=fdem20
Alireza Raisi Iranian Parliament, Majles Shurayeh Islami, or Islamic Consultative Assembly, calle... more Alireza Raisi Iranian Parliament, Majles Shurayeh Islami, or Islamic Consultative Assembly, called Majles hereafter, is one of the key elected institutions in the Islamic Republic of Iran. In addition to legislating laws, the Majles channels factional shifts into Iran's political system. It solidifies citizen-politician linkages within the Islamic Republic. It is the only official body of elected legislators that has a significant but still tenuous role in the supervision of executive agencies. Despite the substantial role of the Majles, few existing studies have focused on the impact of factional politics or the pattern of participation in parliamentary politics, and the evolution of the role and significance of Majles is relatively unexamined. 1 The role and evolution of Parliament in Iran also elude literature on the role of parliaments in transitional societies. Scholarly literature on the role of parliament in transitional societies highlights competitive clientelism, 2 elite cooptation, 3
Following the 1979 Islamic revolution in Iran, analysts and pundits started to explore the intera... more Following the 1979 Islamic revolution in Iran, analysts and pundits started to explore the interaction of religion and politics in Iran. They examined the role of religion in mobilizing the masses, the guardianship of jurists, the components of theocracy in Iran and its implications for policymaking. Despite these scholarly efforts, the relationship between religion and ideology have been relatively overlooked. This chapter aims to explain the origin of a Shia political ideology in Iran. It examines how a Shia political ideology emerged from of traditional Shia thoughts by reviewing the ebbs of flows of this journey in Iran's modern era. In answering this question, the chapter demonstrates the impact of ideas, factional interests, and transnational forces on the rise of Shia political ideology in modern Iran. It argues that in pre-revolutionary time, the ideas particularly a leftist reading of the history of Islam laid the ground for the rise of a Shia political ideology. In the post-revolutionary time, however, policymaking, factional competition contributed to the evolution of Shia ideology, and in post 9/11, transnational and regional power struggle impacted the ideological choice of Iranian ruling elites.
The paper uncovers determinants of turnout in Iran by studying the role of institutional and soci... more The paper uncovers determinants of turnout in Iran by studying the role of institutional and socio-economic variables in parliamentary politics since the 2000s. The paper argues that Iran’s electoral system has dichotomized the pattern of participation between center and periphery. The dynamic of participation in the center stems primarily from national shifts in the factional rule. However, in provincial peripheries, Iran’s electoral system promotes the personal particularistic demands of voters in the MP-citizen linkage. In this environment, the discretionary power of local state machinery over the daily lives of provincial citizens lays the ground for the role of local bureaus to influence participation. This argument draws on statistical analysis of parliamentary turnout and the study of several Iranian newspapers and official reports. The findings of the paper suggest a new mechanism by which institutional settings may shape the pattern of participation more generally. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11109-020-09605-6
The article examines the impact of an unsettled electoral market and evolving political predispos... more The article examines the impact of an unsettled electoral market and evolving political predispositions on the rise and fall of populism in Iran. The article argues that the absence of a polarized electoral contest between reformists and conservatives paved the way for the victory of the populist candidate in the 2005 presidential election in Iran, while the deep economic recession resulting from conservative administration policies created a long-term political experience which influenced voters and led to the victory of the pragmatist candidate in the 2013 and 2017 elections. Quantitative analysis indicates that in the 2005 election, the struggle between conservatives and reformists did not impact the competition between candidates, and consequently depoliticized attitudes, for example distributive demands, ideology, and anti-ruling elite sentiment gained significance, whereas polarization between conservatives and a coalition of reformists and pragmatists enhanced the role of partisanship and triggered the fall of populism in the 2013 election. https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/13510347.2019.1573815?journalCode=fdem20
Alireza Raisi Iranian Parliament, Majles Shurayeh Islami, or Islamic Consultative Assembly, calle... more Alireza Raisi Iranian Parliament, Majles Shurayeh Islami, or Islamic Consultative Assembly, called Majles hereafter, is one of the key elected institutions in the Islamic Republic of Iran. In addition to legislating laws, the Majles channels factional shifts into Iran's political system. It solidifies citizen-politician linkages within the Islamic Republic. It is the only official body of elected legislators that has a significant but still tenuous role in the supervision of executive agencies. Despite the substantial role of the Majles, few existing studies have focused on the impact of factional politics or the pattern of participation in parliamentary politics, and the evolution of the role and significance of Majles is relatively unexamined. 1 The role and evolution of Parliament in Iran also elude literature on the role of parliaments in transitional societies. Scholarly literature on the role of parliament in transitional societies highlights competitive clientelism, 2 elite cooptation, 3
Uploads
Papers by Alireza Raisi
https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11109-020-09605-6
https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/13510347.2019.1573815?journalCode=fdem20
Books by Alireza Raisi
https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11109-020-09605-6
https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/13510347.2019.1573815?journalCode=fdem20