Research Letter of Political Science

The Possibility and Impossibility of Legislation based on Constitutionalist Thought: The Status of the Majles in Iran

Articles in Press

Document Type : Research Paper

Authors

Mostafa Seyedzade 1
Farhang Faghih Larijani 2
Naser Soltani 3
Mahdi Moradi Berelian 2

1 Department of Law. Faculty of Law and Political science. University of Mazandaran. Babolsar. Iran.

2 Public and International Law Dept., Faculty of Law and Political Science, University of Mazandaran, Babolsar, Iran.

3 Department of public law. Faculty of law. College of Farabi. University of Tehran. Qom. Iran.

10.22034/ipsa.2026.575
Abstract
One of the fundamental requirements of constitutionalist thought is the separation of powers and, consequently, the possibility of legislation by elected representatives. With the issuance of the royal proclamation of 1906 and the establishment of the National Majlis in Iran, the Majlis was initially perceived as a legislative body. From the outset, however, an enduring ambiguity remained as to whether it possessed full law-making authority or functioned merely as a consultative institution with limited prerogatives.
Using a historical and conceptual-analytical approach, this article examines the position of the Majlis within Iran’s constitutional order through an analysis of constitutional drafts, inside debates, legal documents, and the conduct of political actors. The findings show that although the Majlis has at times exercised legislative power in practice, this authority has consistently been constrained—first by Article Two of the Amendment and later by the supervisory role of the Guardian Council and institutions such as the Expediency Discernment Council. As a result, the Majlis's role has been reduced to the initiation of legislation, while final approval and legal validity have rested with other bodies. Accordingly, independent legislation by the Assembly has never been fully realized in Iran’s constitutional system.

Keywords

Majles
Law
Legislation
Constitutionalism
Legal Institutionalism
Subjects
Research Letter of Political Science

Articles in Press, Accepted Manuscript
Available Online from 25 September 2026

  • Receive Date 29 March 2026
  • Revise Date 06 July 2026
  • Accept Date 11 August 2026

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