Iran parliament approves president’s entire cabinet, a first since 2001
Al JazeeraAUG 14 2024
Iranian Parliament Approves New President's Cabinet
Above: Undated handout image, released by the office of the Iranian President on July 6, 2024, shows Masoud Pezeshkian, the ninth president of Iran. Image copyright: Hossein Sepahvand/Office of the Iranian President/Getty Images News via Getty Images
The Facts
Lawmakers in Iran voted on Wednesday in favor of all 19 cabinet ministers chosen by Pres. Masoud Pezeshkian, the first time in more than two decades that the 290-seat parliament approved the entire proposed cabinet.
Key figures include Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, a career diplomat who was part of the team that negotiated the 2015 nuclear deal, and Defense Minister Aziz Nasirzadeh, reportedly the chief of the Iranian Air Force from 2018 to 2021.
Nasirzadeh was the most voted among the ministerial nominees, with 281, while Health Minister Mohammadreza Zafarghandi received the lowest, with 163 votes. Roads Minister Farzaneh Sadegh secured 231 votes to become the first female minister in Iran in over a decade.
The Spin
Pro-Iran narrative
Though close to the reformist faction, Pezeshkian was able to get all of his nominees approved by parliament as he formed a national unity cabinet to overcome the political divide. Cooperation between parliament and the president is crucial now that Iran faces illegal US sanctions and Israeli international terrorism.
Anti-Iran narrative
The vote in parliament has exposed the true nature of the Islamic Republic's political system. On paper, lawmakers focus on the governance agenda and policy framework of the new president and his cabinet ministers during the hearings. However, all they truly care about is the nominees' loyalty to Khamenei.