Rethinking Political Islam in Iran: Contestation, Authority, and Reform

Abstract

Political Islam in Iran is frequently portrayed in Western scholarship and policy discourse as a unified and rigid ideological system rooted in the 1979 Islamic Revolution. However, this article contends that it operates as a plural and internally contested field in which state‐directed, reformist‐clerical, and civic interpretations compete over religious authority and political legitimacy. The study shows how revolutionary doctrines became embedded in political institutions while Islamic meanings have been produced through an array of practices, including sermons, clerical writings, protests, and digital activism. It then examines key moments of rupture, including the 2009 Green Movement and the 2022 Mahsa Amini protests, to show how women, youth, and reform‐minded clerics mobilized Qur'anic ethics and Shi'i moral memory to challenge coercion and authoritarian governance. The analysis thereby reframes Islam as a language of justice, dignity, and moral accountability. The article elucidates the implications of Iran's religious plurality for international engagement.