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https://doi.org/10.62836/jissh.v3i1.0006
Yang, X. (2026). The Iranian Revolution and Its Democratic Limits: Why the 1979 Iranian Revolution Did Not Produce Democracy. Journal of Integrated Social Sciences and Humanities, 3(1), 0006. https://doi.org/10.62836/jissh.v3i1.0006
Volume 3, Issue 1, 2026

The Iranian Revolution and Its Democratic Limits: Why the 1979 Iranian Revolution Did Not Produce Democracy

This paper examines why the 1979 Iranian Revolution failed to produce a democratic regime. Drawing on a historical analysis of the revolution and the demands of different social groups, it argues that the movement was not a unified struggle for democracy but a fragile coalition of actors with divergent interests. This lack of cohesion enabled the consolidation of clerical power after the fall of the monarchy. Using Rueschemeyer, Stephens, and Stephens’ theory of democratization, the paper further shows that structural constraints—particularly a weak working class and a highly autonomous state—made democratic outcomes unlikely. The Iranian case thus illustrates how both coalition fragmentation and structural conditions can undermine democratic transitions.

Iranian Revolution democratization coalitions state autonomy working class theocracy

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Supporting Agencies

  1. Funding: This research received no external funding.