Political Theology and the Logic of Power: A Political-Theoretical Analysis of Contemporary Iranian Politics

Abstract

This paper analyzes the logic of power and political theology in contemporary Iran from the 1979 Islamic Revolution to the present. By constructing a progressive analytical framework based on the theories of Max Weber, Carl Schmitt, and Niccolò Machiavelli, it examines how the Iranian regime maintains rule despite an ongoing legitimacy crisis. First, drawing on Weber’s theory of legitimacy, the paper analyzes the transition from Ruhollah Khomeini’s charismatic authority to a hybrid theocratic-republican system. The routinization of charisma into a bureaucratic-religious structure has generated persistent legitimacy deficits, with some survey-based evidence indicating declining public support for theocratic governance. Second, using Schmitt’s concepts of the state of exception and the friend–enemy distinction, the study shows how the regime consolidates power during crises. By framing internal dissenters and external actors as existential threats, authorities justify extraordinary measures that override ordinary legal constraints. Finally, from a Machiavellian perspective, the paper examines coercive stability maintenance through institutions such as the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and the Basij. These mechanisms rely on deterrence and controlled coercion to sustain order. The study concludes that while this system enables short-term stability, it produces long-term vulnerability by eroding social consensus and institutional legitimacy.