TEHRAN - Ali Larijani was elected as the temporary speaker of Iran’s 290-member parliament during an open session of the Majlis on Monday.

 

The new parliament, which is the ninth since the Islamic Revolution, was sworn in on Sunday.   

 

Of the 275 ballots cast, Larijani, who has been holding the post since 2008, received 173 votes, while Gholam Ali Haddad-Adel, his only rival, received 100 votes.

 

After the voting, Larijani delivered a speech in which he stated, “The independence of the Majlis does not constitute conflict with other branches (of government), but rather it means that we analyze the country’s situation and make independent decisions based on the country’s interests.” 

 

Deputy speakers

 

Mohammad Reza Bahonar and Mohammad Hassan Aboutorabifard were also elected as the first and second deputies of the parliament speaker respectively during Monday’s session.   

 

One hundred and seventy-seven MPs voted in favor of Bahonar, and 167 lawmakers voted for Aboutorabifard.  

 

Larijani will serve as the parliament’s temporary speaker until the permanent members of the Majlis Presiding Board are elected. 

 

The temporary members of the Presiding Board were elected during the session.  

 

Hossein Sobhaninia, Ali Reza Mondai, Shahin Mohammad Sadeqi, Mohammad Hossein Farhangi, Javad Jahangirzadeh, and Mohammad Dehqan were elected as secretaries of the Presiding Board. 

 

And Abdolreza Mesri, Sharif Hosseini, and Mohammad Ashouri were elected as supervising members of the board.