Hassan Khomeini, the 53-year-old grandson of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, is quickly gaining prominence as a top contender to succeed Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, according to a Reuters report citing five sources.
Khamenei, 86, has ruled Iran since the elder Khomeini’s death in 1989. Over the past decade, his prolonged leadership, crackdown on dissent, and the country’s deepening economic troubles have sparked growing public discontent. Recent airstrikes by the United States and Israel have also exposed the regime’s vulnerabilities, further intensifying speculation over the succession.
Ruhollah Khomeini had seven children, among whom his second son, Ahmad Khomeini, was closely involved in the Islamic Revolution. Ahmad was once viewed as a possible successor but died of a heart attack in 1995 at age 49. His son Hassan, now a prominent cleric, is continuing the family legacy.
Hassan Khomeini is widely regarded as a moderate figure who maintains ties with both reformist and conservative circles. He has voiced support for women’s rights and is reportedly close to former President Hassan Rouhani, a leading moderate. He has also kept his distance from hardliners such as former President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and has published critical essays on Ahmadinejad’s combative foreign policy and focus on nuclear development.
Iran’s Supreme Leader is chosen by the Assembly of Experts, a body of Islamic scholars. However, despite growing criticism at home and abroad, Khamenei’s preference is expected to carry the most weight in determining his successor.
Khamenei’s second son, Mojtaba, is also a cleric and was once seen as a leading contender. But the idea of hereditary succession remains controversial. One of the central goals of the 1979 Islamic Revolution was to dismantle the monarchy and end the dynastic rule of the Pahlavi dynasty. For many Iranians, passing power from father to son would echo the very system the revolution sought to overturn.
