Iranian hardliner Ayatollah Ahmad Jannati was re-elected as the head of the Guardian Council, Iran’s elections and constitutional watchdog, at the Wednesday July 29 session of the council.
Jannati, who became a member of the council in 1981, has served as its chairman since 1992.
The Board of Directors of the 12-member council is elected each year. The council is responsible for reviewing bills once they are passed by Parliament to ensure they do not contravene the constitution. It also determines the eligibility of candidates for elections at all levels of government.
In the past, the Guardian Council has been seriously criticized by reformist and progressive forces for its bias toward conservative candidates.
The Guardian Council is made up of 12 senior members of the clergy appointed by the Supreme Leader and six legal experts proposed and voted for in Parliament.
