The Revolution and the Question of Law; Holding the Elections for the Assembly of Experts for the Constitution

One of the most important events of the 20th of Mordad was the holding of the elections for the Assembly of Experts for the Constitution in 1979; an election held in the tense atmosphere of the first months after the revolution, which was supposed to shape the legal and political structure of the newly established system.

After the fall of the Pahlavi regime, the main issue was not merely the transfer of power, but rather determining the basis on which the new system would be run. Various political, religious, and intellectual groups each presented a different vision of Iran's future. The Assembly of Experts for the Constitution was formed in such conditions; a body tasked with drafting a law that was to define the relationship between republicanism, Islamism, elected institutions, and political leadership. The new constitution, while emphasizing elections and representative institutions, defined a special structure of power in which appointed and ideological institutions also played a decisive role.

From that time onward, the debate over the balance between the people's vote, government powers, and political freedoms became one of the main axes of politics in Iran; a debate that continues to this day.