BBCFormer Iranian President Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani has been elected speaker of a powerful clerical body responsible for supervising Iran's Supreme Leader.
The Assembly of Experts has the power to dismiss the Islamic state's highest authority, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
Mr Rafsanjani will succeed Ayatollah Ali Meshkini, who died in July.
Correspondents say the appointment further consolidates the authority of Mr Rafsanjani, who is already a powerful figure in Iranian politics.
The former president, who is regarded a moderate conservative, was first elected to the assembly in December 2006.
Power struggle
Before he went into the election, which was held behind closed doors, Mr Rafsanjani was keen to stress the importance of the supervisory body.
"The Assembly of Experts should be considered one of the main pillars of the country because it has the responsibility to supervise the leader's qualification," he said.
Afterwards, officials announced that Mr Rafsanjani had received 41 votes in the 86-seat assembly, 11 more than his nearest challenger, Ayatollah Ahmed Jannati.
Ayatollah Jannati, a hard-line conservative cleric who heads the powerful Guardian Council, had earlier expressed his unhappiness with Mr Rafsanjani's political resurgence.
Mr Rafsanjani's victory will also be a blow to President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and his anti-reformist ally, Ayatollah Mohammed Taqi Mesbah-Yazdi.
The BBC's Jon Leyne in Tehran says there is now a clear divide in Iranian politics between supporters of Mr Rafsanjani and those of Mr Ahmadinejad, and a complex power struggle is being carried out behind the scenes.
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