1961 Iranian legislative election explained

Flag Image:	State flag of Iran (1933–1964).svg
Country:	Iran
Type:	parliamentary
Previous Election:	1960 Iranian legislative election
Previous Year:	1960
Next Election:	1963 Iranian legislative election
Next Year:	1963
Seats For Election:	All 200 seats to the National Consultative Assembly
Election Date:	10 January to 4 February 1961^[1]
Leader1:	Manouchehr Eghbal
Party1:	Party of Nationalists
Seats1:	75
Alliance1:	—
Colour1:	4169E1
Leader2:	Asadollah Alam
Party2:	People's Party
Seats2:	65
Alliance2:	—
Colour2:	FE8002
Prime Minister
Before Election:	Jafar Sharif-Emami
Before Party:	Independent
After Election:	Ali Amini
After Party:	Independent
Seat Change1:	29
Seat Change2:	15

Parliamentary elections were held in Iran in 1961, after the elections the previous year had been annulled by the Shah.^[2] The result was a victory for the Party of Nationalists, which won majority of the seats.^[2]

National Front candidates had been forcibly prevented from campaigning, such as Boroumand in Isfahan.^[3] Among opposition, only Allahyar Saleh was able to win a seat in his native Kashan.^[4]

Results

Zonis (1971) and Mehrdad (1980)

Party	Seats
Party of Nationalists	69
People's Party	64
Iran Party	1
Independents	31
Total	165
Source: Zonis^[5] and Mehrdad^[6]

Chehabi (1990)

Party
Party of Nationalists	45
People's Party	35
Independents	20
Total	100
Source: Chehabi^[7]

Nohlen et al. (2001)

Party	Seats
Party of Nationalists	75
People's Party	65
Independents	32
Others	28
Total	200
Source: Nohlen et al.

Notes and References

Chronology December 16, 1960–March 15, 1961 . . Spring 1961 . 15 . 2 . 187 . 4323348.
Book: Dieter. Nohlen. Dieter Nohlen. Florian. Grotz. Christof . Hartmann . 2001. Elections in Asia: A Data Handbook. Oxford University Press. Iran. I. 68, 73. 0-19-924958-X.
Book: Houchang E. Chehabi. Iranian Politics and Religious Modernism: The Liberation Movement of Iran Under the Shah and Khomeini. I.B.Tauris. 152. 1990. 1850431981.
Book: Maziar . Behrooz. 2000. Rebels With A Cause: The Failure of the Left in Iran. I.B.Tauris. 1860646301. 171.
Book: Zonis, Marvin. Political Elite of Iran. Princeton University Press. 71. 1971. 9781400868803. The Melliyun led with sixty-nine seats, the Mardom had sixty-four. But with neither party holding a majority, the votes of the thirty-two independents also elected would be decisive. And among the thirty-two was the name of Allahyar Saleh, the leader of the Iran party, the intellectual wing of the National Front..
Mehrdad. Hormoz. 148645507. 1980. Political orientations and the style of intergroup leadership interactions: the case of Iranian political parties. PhD. Ohio State University. osu1487090992443849. 280.
Book: Houchang E. Chehabi. Iranian Politics and Religious Modernism: The Liberation Movement of Iran Under the Shah and Khomeini. I.B.Tauris. 152. 1990. 1850431981. When the election results were announced, the Melliyun party had obtained about 45 percent, and the Mardom party 35 percent of Majles seats, with the rest going to independents. In Teheran, pro-Amini independents had gained six out of fifteen seats, but Amini himself had not run. Nationalist candidates running individually, like Borumand in Isfahan, had been forcibly prevented from campaigning, with one exception: in Kashan, Saleh ran unopposed and was elected..