1979_Iranian_Islamic_Republic_referendum
A referendum on creating an Islamic Republic was held in Iran on 30 and 31 March 1979. Ayatollah Khomeini did not allow an open referendum, insisting that the Iranian population had chosen an "Islamic Republic" already by demonstrating against the Shah. In response, political parties such as the National Democratic Front and the Fadaiyan Khalgh boycotted the referendum.
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In the Name of the Almighty [God] Provisional Government of Islamic Revolution The Interior Ministry Referendum Election Ballot Age-old [monarchial] regime change to Islamic republic, the constitution of which will be approved by the nation — Yes or No?[2] | ||||||||||||||||
  The two-parts ballot of referendum, with the green paper indicating "Yes" and red paper indicating "No"[2] | ||||||||||||||||
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The Mojahedin Khalgh, the Tudeh Party, The Liberation Movement, the National Front, and the Islamic People's Republican Party, also "objected to the imposition of Khomeini's choice".[4] According to "official results", it was approved by 98.2% of eligible citizens.[3][5]
In order to include the Iranian youth who participated in the revolution, the voting age was lowered from 18 to 16.[3]
Following this, the 1906 constitution was declared invalid and a new constitution for an Islamic state was created and ratified by another referendum in December 1979.
The Interim Government of Iran invited a four-man delegation of international jurists from International Association of Democratic Lawyers to monitor the voting.[11] According to The Washington Post, polling places lacked voting booths and the colored ballots could clearly be seen by observers, quoting head of the delegation "this is not the way we do things in the West, and it does not meet our criteria of democracy".[12] Sadegh Zibakalam describes the referendum as "free and fair".[13] Michael Axworthy states "there may have been some irregularities in the referendum, but most balanced observers then and since have accepted that whatever the conditions, a referendum at that time with that question would always have given a massive majority for the same result".[14]
A huge voter turnout was reported nationwide, except for Turkmen Sahra and Iranian Kurdistan, where the referendum was not held in full due to ongoing armed conflicts.[15]
| Choice | Votes | % |
|---|---|---|
| For | 20,147,855 | 99.3 |
| Against | 140,996 | 0.7 |
| Valid Votes | 20,288,851 | 100 |
| Source: Nohlen et al[1] | ||
| Choice | Votes |
|---|---|
| Number of Eligible Voters | 20,857,391 |
| Number of Actual Voters | 20,440,108 |
| Voter Turnout | 98% |
| Source: Iran Social Science Data Portal[16] | |
Results by province
| Province | Votes | Proportion of votes | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Yes | No | Yes | No | |
| East Azerbaijan Province | 2,001,628 | 5,354 | 99.73% | 0.27% |
| West Azerbaijan Province | 640,323 | 5,547 | 99.14% | 0.86% |
| Isfahan Province | 1,357,605 | 4,470 | 99.67% | 0.33% |
| Ilam Province | 161,942 | 16 | 99.99% | 0.01% |
| Bakhtaran Province | 612,830 | 6,159 | 99.00% | 1.00% |
| Bushehr Province | 200,023 | 333 | 99.83% | 0.17% |
| Tehran Province | 3,462,449 | 72,980 | 97.94% | 2.06% |
| Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari Province | 210,936 | 885 | 99.58% | 0.42% |
| Khorasan Province | 1,983,458 | 6,712 | 99.66% | 0.34% |
| Khuzestan Province | 1,248,591 | 8,557 | 99.32% | 0.68% |
| Zanjan Province | 765,786 | 875 | 99.89% | 0.11% |
| Semnan Province | 185,674 | 424 | 99.77% | 0.23% |
| Sistan and Baluchestan Province | 314,319 | 1,052 | 99.67% | 0.33% |
| Fars Province | 1,224,821 | 5,281 | 99.57% | 0.43% |
| Kordestan Province | 318,360 | 2,570 | 99.20% | 0.80% |
| Kerman Province | 651,011 | 1,507 | 99.77% | 0.23% |
| Kohgiluyeh and Boyer-Ahmad Province | 159,463 | 254 | 99.84% | 0.16% |
| Gilan Province | 810,708 | 7,539 | 99.08% | 0.92% |
| Lorestan Province | 643,216 | 821 | 99.87% | 0.13% |
| Mazandaran Province | 1,205,501 | 3,871 | 99.68% | 0.32% |
| Markazi Province | 771,189 | 1,052 | 99.86% | 0.14% |
| Hormozgan Province | 252,791 | 3,842 | 98.50% | 1.50% |
| Hamedan Province | 744,636 | 1,023 | 99.86% | 0.14% |
| Yazd Province | 241,024 | 187 | 99.92% | 0.08% |
| Abroad | 118,069 | 12,444 | 90.47% | 9.53% |
| Total | 20,286,353 | 153,755 | 99.25% | 0.75% |
| Source: Ministry of Interior[permanent dead link] | ||||
- Nohlen, Dieter; Grotz, Florian; Hartmann, Christof (2001). "Iran". Elections in Asia: A Data Handbook. Vol. I. Oxford University Press. p. 68. ISBN 0-19-924958-X.
- Hovsepian-Bearce, Yvette (2015). The Political Ideology of Ayatollah Khamenei: Out of the Mouth of the Supreme Leader of Iran. Routledge. p. 13. ISBN 978-1317605829.
- Hiro, Dilip (2013). Holy Wars (Routledge Revivals): The Rise of Islamic Fundamentalism. Routledge. p. 169. ISBN 978-1135048310.
- Paydar, Parvin (1995). Women and the Political Process in Twentieth-Century Iran. Cambridge University Press. p. 226. ISBN 978-0-521-59572-8.
- Chehabi, Houchang Esfandiar (1986). Modernist Shi'ism and Politics: The Liberation Movement of Iran (PhD Dissertation). Vol. I/II. Yale University. p. 499. ASIN B0007CAVDC.
- Baktiari, Bahman (1996). Parliamentary Politics in Revolutionary Iran: The Institutionalization of Factional Politics. University Press of Florida. p. 55. ISBN 978-0-8130-1461-6.
- Haddad Adel, Gholamali; Elmi, Mohammad Jafar; Taromi-Rad, Hassan. Political Parties: Selected Entries from Encyclopaedia of the World of Islam. EWI Press. pp. 209–215. ISBN 9781908433022.
- Hiro, Dilip (2013). Iran Under the Ayatollahs (Routledge Revivals). Routledge. p. 128. ISBN 978-1135043810.
- Maziar, Behrooz (2000). Rebels With A Cause: The Failure of the Left in Iran. I.B.Tauris. p. 109. ISBN 1860646301.
- Romano, David (2006). The Kurdish Nationalist Movement: Opportunity, Mobilization and Identity. Cambridge Middle East studies, 22. Cambridge University Press. p. 236. ISBN 978-0-521-85041-4. OCLC 61425259.
- Albala, Nuri; Dossou, Robert; Dreyfus, Nicole; Youssoufi, Abderahmane (May 1979), Commission internationale d'enquete en Iran sur la preparation et le deroulement du referendum des 30 et 31 mars, la situation actuelle des droits de Phomme et la mise en place des nouvelles institutions, les crimes du regime Pahlavi (in French), Association Internationale des Juristes Démocrates
- Ronald Koven (2 April 1979). "Khomeini Decrees Islamic Republic After Vote in Iran". The Washington Post. Retrieved 25 January 2017.
- Sadegh Zibakalam (2014). "To Rule or Not to Rule? An Alternative Look at the Political Life of Ayatollah Khomeini between 1960 and 1980". In Arshin Adib-Moghaddam (ed.). A Critical Introduction to Khomeini. Cambridge University Press. p. 272. ISBN 978-1-107-72906-3.
- Axworthy, Michael (2013), Revolutionary Iran: A History of the Islamic Republic, Oxford University Press, pp. 373–374
- "Landslide Victory for Khomeini Reported in Voting". The New York Times. 2 April 1979. Retrieved 25 January 2017.
- "Referenda", The Iran Social Science Data Portal, Princeton University, retrieved 10 August 2016