With a Raisi presidency, would the nuclear deal remain on the table?

IranElections2021 by Raz Zimmt / Thu, Jun 10, 2021

After the decision by the , a vetting body, to disqualify all but seven out of 592 candidates for the June 18 presidential election, the path appears paved for the election—or rather selection—of Ebrahim Raisi as the next .

Raisi, a hardline cleric born in December 1960 in the holy city of , has served various roles in the judiciary system since the early 1980s, including his controversial role as ’s deputy prosecutor during the mass executions of political prisoners in 1988. In the 2017 presidential elections, Raisi ran against incumbent President but lost after receiving only sixteen million votes compared to the more than twenty-three million received by Rouhani. However, in the wake of reports of Supreme Leader ’s deteriorating health, Raisi has emerged as one of the prominent candidates to succeed him. Since being appointed by Khamenei as judiciary chief in March 2019, Raisi has launched a concerted effort to promote changes in the judiciary, improve his public image, and enhance his rapport with the public—apparently with the backing of the Supreme Leader.

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Dr. Raz Zimmt is a research fellow at the Institute for National Security Studies (INSS) specializing in Iran. He is also a veteran Iran-watcher in the Israeli Defense Forces. Follow him on Twitter: @RZimmt.

For full article: https://www.atlanticcouncil.org/blogs/iransource/with-a-raisi-presidency-would-the-iran- nuclear-deal-remain-on-the-table/