Editor’s Note: Tahereh Hadian-Jazy is a young Iranian academic and writer who has closely followed women’s struggle for equal rights under the Islamic Republic. This is her first piece for Stimson.
By Barbara Slavin, Distinguished Fellow, Middle East Perspectives
Women’s issues have been at the forefront of politics in Iran for many years and figured significantly in recent presidential elections.
The rights and status of women were raised during election debates in light of 2022 protests when many young Iranian women took to the streets to object to being obliged to wear hijab. While conservative candidates defended the strict dress code as mandated by law, many were reluctant to endorse current methods of enforcing the law via so-called “hijab protectors” – also known as morality police — in public places such the metro. The victorious reformist candidate, Masoud Pezeshkian, defended the protestors’ rights and said that his government would oppose the morality police or other efforts to coerce women in their manner of dress. Both camps emphasized women’s rights and their prominent role in Iranian politics.
Another unprecedented trend during the election was the active presence of daughters of all candidates, both conservatives and reformists, who appeared on national television to talk about their fathers’ positions and try to humanize their images. In the past, wives of candidates would occasionally appear but the prominence of daughters this time was new.
Zahra Pezeshkian, Pezeshkian’s daughter, accompanied her father when he registered as a candidate. She later appeared on national TV and talked about her father from a personal standpoint. She defended his policies, attended campaign rallies and travelled with him to every city and province. She had lost her mother and younger brother in a car accident many years ago and Pezeshkian, a cardiologist, never remarried. Zahra has continued to live in her father’s home even though she is married. A chemical engineer, she works for Jam Petrochemical Complex . Massoumeh Ebtekar, former deputy minister of environmental affairs under the reformist administration of Mohammad Khatami, said that Zahra should be called “the First Daughter” since she will carry out tasks traditionally associated with the wife of the president.
Daughters of conservative candidates also appeared on television during the campaign. The daughter of Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf, the parliament speaker who was considered Pezeshkian’s main competition in the first round of elections, defended herself on television against viral social media postings about her luxurious wedding and trip to Turkey to buy items for her first baby. The critique undoubtedly helped sink Qalibaf’s candidacy, since he had advised others to avoid extravagance, luxuries and foreign trips.
Another moderate conservative, Mostafa Pourmohammadi, a cleric and former minister of the interior under hardline president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, surprised many Iranians by offering a strong critique of government policies. His elder daughter, Motahhareh Pourmohammadi, went on television to talk about her father’s agenda and his role in the family. His second daughter, Monireh Pourmohammadi, an economist, appeared at a roundtable of presidential candidates to discuss her father’s economic policies. According to her father, Motahhareh, who is studying for a doctorate in economics, has influenced his ideas.
The daughter of Alireza Zakani, the mayor of Tehran and another conservative candidate in the first round of elections, asserted that her father had raised his children without any special favors. Maryam Zakani said that her family did not always own a house and used to be renters. She also spoke of a sister who had been an outstanding student at Iran’s elite Sharif University of Technology and was admitted to a PhD program in Switzerland “to continue her studies to later serve her country.” She said her father was gentle and had a good sense of humor.
Pezeshkian beat hardliner Saeed Jalili in a second round of voting. (Jalili has no daughters, only a son, who did not give televised interviews about his father.) During the campaign, Pezeshkian promised to bring women and younger people into his cabinet. In the end, he appointed only one woman, Farzaneh Sadegh, 48, as minister of roads and urban development. An architect, Sadegh was deputy minister under the administration of President Hassan Rouhani. Confirmed on Wednesday August 21, by parliament, she is only the second woman cabinet minister in Iran since the 1979 revolution, after Marzieh Vahid Dastjerdi, health minister under Ahmadinejad.
Pezeshkian also appointed Zahra Behrouz Azar as deputy president for women’s affairs. A reformist, she has a PhD in development and entrepreneurship and previously served as a director general in the Tehran municipal government. While some disappointment was expressed at the fact that Pezeshkian kept several holdovers from his predecessor’s conservative administration and did not name any members of ethnic minorities, there is an opportunity for more diversity as he fills out his team with deputy ministers and directors general.
Women have been fighting for equal rights for many decades in Iran and there were protests against enforced veiling immediately after the revolution, as well as efforts to improve women’s legal status. The movement gained strength during the Khatami era of the 1990s. Since then, there has been progress and also setbacks. It remains to be seen how much can be accomplished under Pezeshkian and whether the appearance of daughters on the campaign stage is a sign of real progress or just smarter public relations.
Tahereh Hadian-Jazy is a researcher on Middle eastern Affairs and has written extensively on women and cultural developments in Iran. She holds a Master’s in Modern Middle Eastern Studies from University of Oxford.
In Iran’s Recent Presidential Election, Daughters Took Center Stage
By Tahereh Hadian-Jazy
Middle East & North Africa
Editor’s Note: Tahereh Hadian-Jazy is a young Iranian academic and writer who has closely followed women’s struggle for equal rights under the Islamic Republic. This is her first piece for Stimson.
By Barbara Slavin, Distinguished Fellow, Middle East Perspectives
Women’s issues have been at the forefront of politics in Iran for many years and figured significantly in recent presidential elections.
The rights and status of women were raised during election debates in light of 2022 protests when many young Iranian women took to the streets to object to being obliged to wear hijab. While conservative candidates defended the strict dress code as mandated by law, many were reluctant to endorse current methods of enforcing the law via so-called “hijab protectors” – also known as morality police — in public places such the metro. The victorious reformist candidate, Masoud Pezeshkian, defended the protestors’ rights and said that his government would oppose the morality police or other efforts to coerce women in their manner of dress. Both camps emphasized women’s rights and their prominent role in Iranian politics.
Another unprecedented trend during the election was the active presence of daughters of all candidates, both conservatives and reformists, who appeared on national television to talk about their fathers’ positions and try to humanize their images. In the past, wives of candidates would occasionally appear but the prominence of daughters this time was new.
Zahra Pezeshkian, Pezeshkian’s daughter, accompanied her father when he registered as a candidate. She later appeared on national TV and talked about her father from a personal standpoint. She defended his policies, attended campaign rallies and travelled with him to every city and province. She had lost her mother and younger brother in a car accident many years ago and Pezeshkian, a cardiologist, never remarried. Zahra has continued to live in her father’s home even though she is married. A chemical engineer, she works for Jam Petrochemical Complex . Massoumeh Ebtekar, former deputy minister of environmental affairs under the reformist administration of Mohammad Khatami, said that Zahra should be called “the First Daughter” since she will carry out tasks traditionally associated with the wife of the president.
Daughters of conservative candidates also appeared on television during the campaign. The daughter of Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf, the parliament speaker who was considered Pezeshkian’s main competition in the first round of elections, defended herself on television against viral social media postings about her luxurious wedding and trip to Turkey to buy items for her first baby. The critique undoubtedly helped sink Qalibaf’s candidacy, since he had advised others to avoid extravagance, luxuries and foreign trips.
Another moderate conservative, Mostafa Pourmohammadi, a cleric and former minister of the interior under hardline president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, surprised many Iranians by offering a strong critique of government policies. His elder daughter, Motahhareh Pourmohammadi, went on television to talk about her father’s agenda and his role in the family. His second daughter, Monireh Pourmohammadi, an economist, appeared at a roundtable of presidential candidates to discuss her father’s economic policies. According to her father, Motahhareh, who is studying for a doctorate in economics, has influenced his ideas.
The daughter of Alireza Zakani, the mayor of Tehran and another conservative candidate in the first round of elections, asserted that her father had raised his children without any special favors. Maryam Zakani said that her family did not always own a house and used to be renters. She also spoke of a sister who had been an outstanding student at Iran’s elite Sharif University of Technology and was admitted to a PhD program in Switzerland “to continue her studies to later serve her country.” She said her father was gentle and had a good sense of humor.
Pezeshkian beat hardliner Saeed Jalili in a second round of voting. (Jalili has no daughters, only a son, who did not give televised interviews about his father.) During the campaign, Pezeshkian promised to bring women and younger people into his cabinet. In the end, he appointed only one woman, Farzaneh Sadegh, 48, as minister of roads and urban development. An architect, Sadegh was deputy minister under the administration of President Hassan Rouhani. Confirmed on Wednesday August 21, by parliament, she is only the second woman cabinet minister in Iran since the 1979 revolution, after Marzieh Vahid Dastjerdi, health minister under Ahmadinejad.
Pezeshkian also appointed Zahra Behrouz Azar as deputy president for women’s affairs. A reformist, she has a PhD in development and entrepreneurship and previously served as a director general in the Tehran municipal government. While some disappointment was expressed at the fact that Pezeshkian kept several holdovers from his predecessor’s conservative administration and did not name any members of ethnic minorities, there is an opportunity for more diversity as he fills out his team with deputy ministers and directors general.
Women have been fighting for equal rights for many decades in Iran and there were protests against enforced veiling immediately after the revolution, as well as efforts to improve women’s legal status. The movement gained strength during the Khatami era of the 1990s. Since then, there has been progress and also setbacks. It remains to be seen how much can be accomplished under Pezeshkian and whether the appearance of daughters on the campaign stage is a sign of real progress or just smarter public relations.
Tahereh Hadian-Jazy is a researcher on Middle eastern Affairs and has written extensively on women and cultural developments in Iran. She holds a Master’s in Modern Middle Eastern Studies from University of Oxford.
Recent & Related