The 2021 Iran Presidential elections saw Ebrahim Raisi, a close ally of Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, become the country's eighth president. The elections were not free from controversy, however. To start, voter turnout was 48.48%, a shamefully low number. In the past, Iran has had a higher voter turnout percentage (60-75%) than the U.S (50-60%) in typical presidential elections. Occasionally, elections are not "typical" in that they are seen not as a battle between two candidates but rather as an indicator of a potential shift or flashpoint. The United States had an election like this in 2020, and we saw the highest voter turnout (66.2%) since the 1996 election in which William McKinley won with just over 7 million votes.
It is critical to note that all of the most popular candidates, including former presidents, are still subject to the decision of the Guardian Council. This means that if the 12 member committee feels they should not be permitted to run, they will not be able to do so.
Naturally, when so many are barred from running, people become upset and try to delegitimize the election's outcome and the regime. Many have called the election blatantly fraudulent and a sham. In fact, the elections were so problematic that the candidate who finished second, Mohsen Rezaee, received fewer votes than there were ballots invalidated. It is worth noting, however, that Mohsen Rezaee is currently Vice President for Economic Affairs (and, like Raisi, is similarly accused of human rights violations) and had served as secretary of the Expediency Discernment Council, which resolves issues between the Guardian Council and Parliament (continued passage of the same bill being vetoed by the Guardian Council and similar situations). He held this role from 1997-2021.
The future of Iran, and in particular the issue of Ali Khamenei's successor (or if there is to be one at all), will become hotly debated issues in the coming years and may result in the Islamic Republic of Iran becoming more democratic.