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Back then, as president, Khamenei couldn’t do much. But when he became supreme leader, he didn’t object to the position of prime minister being eliminated by a change in the Constitution. Now he could do the same with the post of the president. With stability a concern, why not rip out the co-pilot seat and captain the plane of the Islamic Republic alone? After all, quarrelling with the co-pilot can be distracting, and could ultimately cause the plane to crash. And with the new set up, the parliament would be too weak to pose any challenge to regime stability.

Khamenei could also be planning for his own succession, as removing the post of president would have an impact on Iran’s next supreme leader as well. It’s possible that he has already decided that his son Mojtaba should take over, or that another, weaker, figure should replace him with the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corp (IRGC) manning the political levers of the country.

With these kinds of scenarios in mind, Khamenei may have decided that having a president could create division, division that the regime’s foes might exploit. With this in mind, and to ensure a smooth transition of power to the next supreme leader – and clear lines of authority after he takes the helm – it would be better to drop the post of president.

Ali Khamenei had less legitimacy than Khomeini, which explains why he felt threatened by his presidents. And Mojtaba Khamenei would have even less legitimacy th... >>>