Mohammad Reza Aref | |
|---|---|
محمدرضا عارف | |
.jpg) Aref in 2025 | |
| 2nd & 8thFirst Vice President of Iran | |
| Assumed office 28 July 2024 | |
| President | Masoud Pezeshkian |
| Preceded by | Mohammad Mokhber |
| In office 26 August 2001 – 10 September 2005 | |
| President | Mohammad Khatami |
| Preceded by | Hassan Habibi |
| Succeeded by | Parviz Davoodi |
| Member of the Parliament of Iran | |
| In office 28 May 2016 – 26 May 2020 | |
| Constituency | Tehran, Rey, Shemiranat and Eslamshahr |
| Majority | 1,608,926 (49.55%) |
| Member ofExpediency Discernment Council | |
| Assumed office 16 March 2002 | |
| Appointed by | Ali Khamenei |
| Chairman | Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani Ali Movahedi-Kermani (Acting) Mahmoud Hashemi Shahroudi Sadeq Larijani |
| Supervisor ofPresidential Administration of Iran | |
| In office 26 August 2001 – 10 September 2005 | |
| President | Mohammad Khatami |
| Preceded by | Mohammad Hashemi Rafsanjani |
| Succeeded by | Ali Saeedlou |
| Vice President of Iran Head of Management and Planning Organization | |
| In office 2 December 2000 – 11 September 2001 | |
| President | Mohammad Khatami |
| Preceded by | Mohammad-Ali Najafi |
| Succeeded by | Mohammad Sattarifar |
| Minister of Post, Telegraph and Telephone | |
| In office 20 August 1997 – 17 June 2000 | |
| President | Mohammad Khatami |
| Preceded by | Mohammad Gharazi |
| Succeeded by | Nasrollah Jahangard(acting) |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1951-12-19)19 December 1951 (age 74) |
| Party | Omid Iranian Foundation[1] |
| Other political affiliations | Islamic Iran Participation Front(Founding member)[2] |
| Spouse | Hamideh Moravvej Farshi |
| Children | 3 |
| Alma mater | University of Tehran Stanford University |
| Occupation | Academic |
| Signature |  |
| Website | ee |
Mohammad Reza Aref (Persian:محمدرضا عارف, born 19 December 1951) is an Iranian engineer, academic andreformist politician who is the eighth and currentfirst vice president of Iran since 2024, under PresidentMasoud Pezeshkian; he previously served as the first vice-president from 2001 to 2005 underMohammad Khatami.[3][4] He is also currently member of theExpediency Discernment Council since 2002.
He was the parliamentary leader of reformists'Hope fraction in theIranian Parliament, representingTehran, Rey, Shemiranat and Eslamshahr. Aref has also been heading theReformists' Supreme Council for Policymaking since its establishment in 2015.[5]
He was also the second first vice president from 2001 to 2005 underMohammad Khatami andMahmoud Ahmadinejad.[6] He previously served asMinister Information and Communications Technology and head ofManagement and Planning Organization in Khatami's firstcabinet. He was a member ofSupreme Council of the Cultural Revolution until 2021. He is also an electrical engineer and a professor atUniversity of Tehran andSharif University of Technology. He was a candidate in the2013 presidential election but withdrew his candidacy in order to give thereformist camp a better chance to win.[7][8]
During themass protests against the regime in 2026, he tendered his resignation, but it was not accepted by President Pezeshkian.[9]
Aref was born on 19 December 1951 inYazd.[10][11][12] His father, Mirza Ahmad Aref, was a famous businessman.
He received a bachelor's degree in electronics engineering from theUniversity of Tehran, and a master's degree and a PhD in electrical and communication engineering fromStanford University in 1975, 1976 and 1980, respectively.[10] His PhD thesis was on theinformation theory of networks, supervised byThomas M. Cover.[13] He introduced and analyzed deterministic relay networks which is later termed as Aref Networks.[14] During his education at Tehran University, he led many protests and was arrested bySAVAK prior to theIranian Revolution.
During his political career, Aref has held important positions inthe Islamic Republic of Iran. Followingthe Islamic Revolution, he began his political career. His first major political post was in 1981 when he became vice president of communication company. He later became acting president of the company in 1983 and became deputyminister of science on the following year. Aref was a faculty member ofIsfahan University of Technology until 1994.
Aref, who was a professor atUniversity of Tehran, was elected as its chancellor in 1994.[10] He began his career with creatingFaculty of Social Sciences and alsoInstitute of Geophysics. After his appointment as minister of technology, Aref resigned as chancellor of the Tehran University in 1997.[10]
AfterMohammad Khatami was elected asPresident of Iran, he nominated Aref as the minister of post, telegraph, and telephone that was later renamed tominister of communications and information technology. He became the first head of management and planning organization in 2000 after resigned as Minister of Communication.
Khatami was reelected in 2001 and his former vice presidentHassan Habibi resigned immediately after the election. After Habibi's resignation, he appointed Aref as hisFirst Vice President.[12] He served in this post until September 2005 and was succeeded byParviz Dawoodi after the election ofMahmoud Ahmadinejad. Then, he served as a professor in the department of electrical engineering atSharif University of Technology, offering courses oncryptography,coding theory, estimation theory and Information Theory. He is currently one of the members ofthe Expediency Discernment Council that is an advisory unit for Iran's Supreme LeaderAli Khamenei.[12]
He was nominated for parliamentary election of2008 as thereformist front's first in the list but he withdrew to protest the rejection of some candidates by theGuardian Council.[15] In June 2013, Aref announced that he together with other reformist figures was planning to launch a national party, namely Hope of Iran.[16] On the other hand, Iran's president-electHassan Rouhani stated that Aref will be one of his cabinet members.[17] However, Aref rejected Rouhani's invite for a political post (Vice Presidency orMinistry of Science) to focus on his party's establishment. He also announced his interest in becoming one of Rouhani's advisers in politics and human rights.
Aref was one of the potential candidates forthe presidential elections held in June 2013.[12] He said that he would not stand if Khatami ran but after Khatami declined, Aref announced that he would run in the election. He registered on 11 May 2013 and was confirmed by theGuardian Council. His major goals were lowering the unemployment rate and resolving high inflation. He pledged an extra 1 million jobs annually, which would include 200 thousand jobs from tourism development. He also added that if elected, his administration would bolster Iran'sinternational relations and would find a "political solution" to closing the "[nuclear] dossier once and for all". Aref said he would remain "committed to the law" throughout the election process, promising to implement an economic plan to propel the country out of inflation and to achieve development and progress.[18] Aref censured the foreign policy of theAhmadinejad's administration, vowing to improve Iran's diplomatic ties with other countries if elected president. He added that the next administration can have friendly ties with the world and improve the conditions in the country through such relations. Aref also said he would pursue and implement plans to further the presence and participation of the youth in various arenas of the country.[citation needed] Vowing to tackle unemployment, Aref said he aimed all-out development in various political, cultural, economical and social fields.
"By implementing the subsidy reform plan I will put bread on the tables. I have come to eradicate inflation and create one million job opportunities every year",[citation needed]
Aref also said he is areformist and reform means safeguarding the ideals of theIslamic Revolution, accountability and encouraging popular participation.[citation needed] He also called for investigation of alleged fraud in the2009 election and trial of effects inDeath of Neda Agha Soltan and other deaths in theprotests.
Aref announced his decision to drop out of the election in a statement issued late on 11 June, in which he said the decision was made after he received suggestions from former PresidentMohammad Khatami, who advised to stand aside.[19][20] He also called on the Iranian people to vote en masse in the upcoming presidential election to create a political epic and maintain the dignity of theIslamic Republic of Iran.[21]
On 4 November 2014, Aref announced he would run forParliament of Iran in the2016 election fromTehran, Rey, Shemiranat and Eslamshahr district. He officially ran for the seat on 22 December 2015. He was also named as thePervasive Coalition of Reformists' head list.
He was elected to the Parliament with 1,608,926 votes which was the highest in the election. All other 29 Reformists candidates also run to the parliament, the first time since 1980 that all candidates are run from same party in Tehran district.
Aref married Hamideh Moravvej Farshi in 1976.[22] Hamideh has a PhD in dermatology and also works atthe ministry of science. They have three sons.
In 2017, his son Hamid Reza said in an interview "I'm proud that [my] capabilities come from 'good genes'...", which sparked controversy.[23]
(in English)| Assembly seats | ||
|---|---|---|
| Vacant Title last held by Mohammad Reza Tabeshas Head of "Imam's line fraction" | Parliamentary leader ofreformists Head ofHope fraction 2016–2020 | Vacant |
| Academic offices | ||
| Preceded by Gholam-Ali Afrooz | Chancellor of University of Tehran 1994–1997 | Succeeded by Mansour Khalili |
| Political offices | ||
| Preceded by | Minister of Information and Communications Technology 1997–2000 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Head of Management and Planning Organization 2000–2001 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | First Vice President of Iran 2001–2005 | Succeeded by |
| Honorary titles | ||
| Preceded by | Most voted MP forTehran, Rey, Shemiranat and Eslamshahr 2016 | Succeeded by |
| Non-profit organization positions | ||
| New title NGO founded | Head ofOmid Iranian Foundation 2009–present | Incumbent |
| Party political offices | ||
| Preceded by | Campaign manager ofMohammad Khatami 2009 | Vacant |
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