What Happens if the Iranian President Dies in Office? Here's the Constitutional Procedure

New Delhi: In a deadly incident reported on Sunday, May 19, Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi along with the country's other cabinet ministers onboard a helicopter crashed due to suspected fog in the region. As per the latest reports, the rescue team after an intense search operation of almost 12 hours has spotted the crashed chopper. However, the Iranian state TV says that "no sign of life" in the President's helicopter.

Following the incident earlier, the Iranian authorities marked the incident as an "accident." The chopper crashed in Jolfa in the mountainous northwestern region of Iran. The Iranian leader and his cabinet minister were travelling back from their visit to Azerbaijan.

Earlier, the state news agency IRNA quoted the head of Iran's Red Crescent Society, Pir-Hossein Koulivand said that the search operation is being conducted by at least 40 teams on the ground but the "weather conditions made it impossible to conduct aerial searches."

Rescuers in Iran are racing to find the helicopter carrying President Ebrahim Raisi to find out the fate of all those on board. Raisi was elected president in 2021 and, under the current timetable, presidential elections are due to take place in 2025. As of now, no traces or information related to the President has been detected.

What Happens if the President Dies? 

Here is a brief outline of what Iran's constitution states could happen if a president is incapacitated or dies in office:

As per the Islamic Republic's constitution, Article 131, states that 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, Reuters reported. 

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