Ayatollah Khamenei’s son is frontrunner to succeed dad as Iran’s new supreme leader: report
The son of Iranian Ayatollah Ali Khamenei is the frontrunner to replace him as supreme leader, according to reports.
Mojtaba Khamenei, 56, is currently favored to take control of Iran by the country’s Assembly of Experts, a powerful body of clerics that makes the decision, the New York Times reported while citing sources close to the deliberations.
Other outlets – including Israeli media and Iranian opposition channels – were reporting early Tuesday that Mojtaba had already been selected, though Iranian state media has not confirmed anything.
Mojtaba Khamenei (center), son of Iranian Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, was reportedly selected to replace him as supreme leader.picture alliance via Getty Images
The report was widely being picked up by Israeli media but had not been confirmed by Iranian state mouthpieces.
Mojtaba was at first believed to have been among the 40 top Iranian aides killed during the Saturday strike that took out Iran’s highest-ranking cleric.
Mojtaba was at first believed to have been among the 40 top Iranian aides killed during the Saturday strike that took out Tehran’s highest-ranking cleric, his despotic 86-year-old father who ruled over Iran with an iron grip for decades.
But reports of his name being floated within leadership succession discussions indicate he is alive and well – and could be well on the way to furthering his father’s cause of severely anti-western sentiments.
Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei gives his Friday prayer sermon at Tehran University in this video grab June 19, 2009.REUTERS
Motjaba — the ayatollah’s second-oldest son — has been known for his staunch adherence to his father’s hardline conservatism and has close ties to Iran’s notoriously brutal Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps military body, according to CNN.
He had no official role in his father’s regime but was still sanctioned by the US in 2019.
If it’s true Mojtaba is now leading Iran or about to, that appointment was unexpected.
May 31, 2019 file photo shows, Son of Irans Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Mojtaba Khamenei, attends a demonstration to mark Jerusalem day in Tehran.NurPhoto via Getty Images
The country’s officials have traditionally looked down on family succession in its leadership – especially since the current regime seized power by toppling a kinship-fueled monarchy in the 1979 Islamic Revolution.
“If he is elected, it suggests it is a much more hard-line Revolutionary Guard side of the regime that is now in charge,” Johns Hopkins University expert on Iran, Vali Nasr, told the Times.
Other experts said Mojtaba is the “wisest pick” because of how close he is with the highest levels of Iran’s security and military apparatus through the Revolutionary Guard.
If it’s true Mojtaba is now leading Iran or about to, that appointment was unexpected.NurPhoto via Getty Images
Whoever is picked would also need to be cleared by the nation’s Guardian Council, which vets laws and leaders to make sure they are in good standing with strict Islamic codes.
Those expectations made Mojtaba an unlikely choice, as the supreme leader serves as Iran’s religious figurehead as well as the leader of the government.
Mojtaba has no serious religious credentials, which under normal circumstances put him in the crosshairs of a Guardian Council veto, according to the Wall Street Journal.
His close association with his father – whose hardline policies and violent crackdown on Iranian protesters brought about the country’s current predicament – were also viewed as a hindrance to his ascension to power.
Iran has currently been in the hands of a three-man council run by two of Ali Khamenei’s top henchmen who survived the strike.REUTERS
“A portion of the public will react negatively and forcefully to this decision, and it will have a backlash,” analyst Rahmati said.
Still, others characterize Mojtaba as a possibly “extremely progressive” pick who could “move to sideline the hard-liners.”
“See his appointment as a shedding of skin,” said Abdolreza Davari, an Iranian politician who is close to Mojtaba, according to the Times.
President Donald J. Trump oversees Operation Epic Fury at Mar-a-Lago, Palm Beach, FL, March 1, 2026.White House
How much real power Mojtaba would actually have either way remains unclear.
Ali Khamenei ruled Iran for 37 years, during which time he was able to consolidate a sprawling cult and cadre of cronies insulating him from dissent.
Experts have speculated that his successor is unlikely to be able to wield as much power himself and will instead serve as a figurehead.
“We can almost certainly say that leadership will not be concentrated in one person,” Ali Khamenei biographer Mehdi Khalaji told the Journal.
“The next supreme leader will be mostly ceremonial.”
Panic Spreads Across Washington, D.C. They Will Lose 19 U.S. House Seats After Supreme Court Ruling Could Give Republicans
WASHINGTON, D.C. — May 2, 2026
New population projections suggest Democrats could face a growing structural disadvantage in future presidential and congressional elections following the 2030 Census, as demographic shifts continue to favor faster-growing states that have leaned Republican in recent cycles.
Estimates show several large Democratic-leaning states may lose Electoral College votes, while a handful of Republican-leaning states are expected to gain representation due to sustained population growth. Under current projections, Texas could add as many as three Electoral College votes, Florida may gain two, and smaller increases are anticipated for states such as Idaho and Utah, each potentially adding one additional vote.
At the same time, traditionally Democratic strongholds could lose ground. California is projected to lose up to three Electoral College votes, Illinois could lose two, and New York and Rhode Island are each expected to lose one vote.
These changes are determined by population growth patterns that dictate how congressional seats — and by extension Electoral College votes — are apportioned every ten years following the census. Each state’s Electoral College total equals its number of House seats plus two senators, meaning population gains or losses directly influence presidential math over time.
Analysis indicates that population growth in southern and western states is outpacing that of large coastal states, creating long-term challenges for Democrats in national elections. Several factors are driving these migration patterns, including lower housing costs, job opportunities, and more favorable tax environments in states like Texas and Florida, which have attracted residents from higher-cost areas such as California and New York. Some regions in the Northeast and Midwest have experienced slower growth or even population declines.
These trends have already begun to reshape the Electoral College map. After the 2020 Census, states like Texas and Florida gained seats, while California lost a congressional seat for the first time in its history. If current projections hold through the end of the decade, the impact could be even more pronounced in the 2032 presidential election and beyond.
One key implication is that the traditional Democratic path to 270 Electoral College votes may become more difficult. In recent elections, Democrats have relied on a coalition of large blue states combined with key battlegrounds in the Midwest. However, with fewer votes coming from those large states, the party may need to expand its map into faster-growing Sun Belt states such as Arizona, Georgia, or North Carolina to remain competitive.
Analysts caution that population trends do not automatically translate into political outcomes. People moving from traditionally Democratic states to Republican-leaning states may bring their voting preferences with them, potentially making those states more competitive over time. Additionally, census accuracy, economic conditions, and future migration patterns could all influence the final apportionment results. Early projections often shift as new data becomes available.
It is also important to note that both parties could be affected by these changes in different ways. While Republicans may benefit from gains in certain states, competitive states losing or gaining seats could reshape the battlefield for both sides.
Still, the broader trajectory points to a gradual shift in political power toward faster-growing regions of the country. That shift has implications not just for presidential elections, but also for congressional representation and federal funding allocations.
For Democrats, the challenge may be less about any single election cycle and more about adapting to long-term demographic and geographic changes. For Republicans, the opportunity lies in maintaining or expanding their advantage in high-growth states while remaining competitive in key swing regions.
As the 2030 Census approaches, these trends are likely to become a central focus for strategists in both parties, shaping campaign strategies, policy priorities, and the evolving map of American politics.
