Since the death of Khamenei yesterday, Iran has already picked a replacment for him in that of a three person council, which will include Ayatollah Arafi:
Iran names Ayatollah Alireza Arafi to its interim leadership council, which will be at the helm of the country following the killing of supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
“The Expediency Discernment Council has elected Ayatollah Alireza Arafi as a member of the interim leadership council,” says expediency council spokesman Mohsen Dehnavi in a post on X.
The interim council, which will also include the president and the head of the judiciary, will lead the country until the Assembly of Experts “elects a permanent leader as soon as possible.”
Arafi will co-lead the country with President Masoud Pezeshkian, who will handle the executive branch, and Judiciary Chief Gholamhossein Mohseni Ejei, who will run the legal and security apparatu.
Even though this is a three person council, I think Arafi is seen as Khamenei’s replacement. And that’s certainly not a position I would want right now, as it’s possible he won’t live very long…