For months, many political watchers had been waiting for the day when a new chairman of Assembly of Experts was elected. The day arrived, and the outcome was deemed a surprise: Ayatollah Mohammad Yazdi.

Before the election, speculation revolved around the nomination of Guardian Council head, Ayatollah Ahmad Jannati, and Ayatollah Mohammad-Taghi Mesbah Yazdi, spiritual leader of hard-liner Endurance Front, both of whom are prominent figures of the conservative camp. There was no serious news and even predictions about the candidacy and consequent victory of Yazdi, the chairman of the Society of Seminary Teachers of Qom, all of whom are critics of President Hassan Rouhani’s administration.

Many expected the election to be an easy victory for either Expediency Council head Hashemi Rafsanjani or ex-judiciary chief Ayatollah Mahmoud Shahroudi, both of whom are considered pro-Rouhani figures.

The moment of truth came when four candidates presented their names: Yazdi, Ayatollah Mohammad Momen (a conservative with no serious chance of a nomination), Rafsanjani and Shahroudi. The presence of four candidates was unprecedented for internal elections of the Assembly of Experts, which supervises and elects the supreme leader.