What happens if an Iranian president dies in office?

Rescuers in Iran were racing on Sunday to find the crash site of a helicopter that was carrying President Ebrahim Raisi to find out the fate of all those on board.

Below is brief outline of what Iran’s constitution says happens if a president is incapacitated or dies in office:

According to article 131 of the Islamic Republic’s constitution, if a president dies in office the first vice president takes over, with the confirmation of the supreme leader, who has the final say in all matters of state.

A council consisting of the first vice president, the speaker of parliament and the head of the judiciary must arrange a election for a new president within a maximum period of 50 days.

Raisi was elected president in 2021 and, under the current timetable, presidential elections are due to take place in 2025.

What happened?

A helicopter carrying Iran’s President Ebrahim Raisi was involved in a “crash upon landing” amid poor weather conditions on Sunday, state media Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA) has confirmed.

“An accident happened to the helicopter carrying Iran President Raisi” in the Jofa region of the western province of East Azerbaijan, state television said, adding that rescue efforts were underway.

“The harsh weather conditions and heavy fog have made it difficult for the rescue teams to reach the accident site,” state TV said in an on-screen news alert.

Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian, Governor of East Azerbaijan province Malek Rahmati and others were also onboard the convoy, which comprised of three helicopters, of which the other two have landed safely.

The accident occurred when Raisi was returning from his visit of East Azerbaijan province where he inaugurated a dam project in the company of his Azeri counterpart, Ilham Aliev, on the border between the two countries.

Who is Raisi?

Ebrahim Raisi has been president of the Islamic Republic since June 2021, succeeding the moderate Hassan Rouhani, for a term during which Iran has faced crisis and conflict.

He took the reins of a country in the grip of a deep social crisis and an economy strained by US sanctions against Tehran over its contested nuclear programme.

Iran saw a wave of mass protests triggered by the death in custody of Iranian Kurd Mahsa Amini in September 2022.

In March 2023, regional rivals Iran and Saudi Arabia signed a surprise deal that restored diplomatic relations.

The bombardment in Gaza that began on October 7 sent regional tensions soaring again and a series of tit-for-tat escalations led to Tehran launching hundreds of missiles and rockets directly at Israel in April 2024.

Ebrahim Raisi, born in 1960 in northeast Iran’s holy city of Mashhad, rose early to high office. Aged just 20, he was named prosecutor-general of Karaj next to Tehran.

He served as Tehran’s prosecutor-general from 1989 to 1994, deputy chief of the Judicial Authority for a decade from 2004, and then national prosecutor-general in 2014.