Map of Iran's electoral districts according to the Majles Research Center's classifications - 2014

In November 2014, the Majles Research Center published its expert opinion regarding the bill on the distribution of the 20 new seats among the electoral districts. The Research Center found two basic flaws with the bill, concluding that the distribution of the 20 new seats would be unfair and discriminatory. The first issue was that the bill does not specify on what basis the districts that would gain seats are determined. Second, the bill disregards the country’s general policies concerning elections as approved by the Expediency Discernment Council, namely the stipulation that electoral districts be determined “according to population and unavoidable circumstances in a way that maximizes fairness in elections and people’s familiarity with candidates.”

This map shows Iran's electoral districts as they rank among the three categories determined by the Majles Research Center. Districts that have more than 50,000 people above the national average population per representative are shown in orange, those with more than 50,000 below the average are in blue, while those that fall within the 50,000 range are in white.

In this map, districts whose population-to-representative ratio is more than 50,000 people above the national average are colored orange. These districts have a very high population relative to the number of Majles seats allocated to them. Districts whose ratio is more than 50,000 people below the average are ranked as very low population and colored in blue. Residents of these districts have a higher voting power than the national average. Districts whose population-to-representative ratio falls within the 50,000 people range of deviation from the national average are considered to be in good shape as far as population goes, and are colored in white.

For a closer look at the fair distribution of Majles seats in Iran, please refer to the Nabz-Nameh dedicated to this topic: “Majles Seats and the Challenge of Fair Distribution”.

Other elections-related resources:

• The Provincialization of Elections and the Future of the Electoral Process in Iran
• Map of Iran's electoral districts as of 2016, classified according to the Venice Commission's guidelines
• Map of Iran's provinces, classified according to the Venice Commission's guidelines - 2016
• The Declaration of Principles for International Election Observation and Code of Conduct for International Observers