In May 2021, Larijani announced his candidacy for the Iranian presidential election. However, his bid was unexpectedly thwarted by the Guardian Council, which disqualified him from running. This decision shocked both conservatives and reformists, as Larijani had been a fixture in the upper echelons of Iranian politics since the 1979 revolution. The Guardian Council did not provide a clear reason for his disqualification, leaving many to speculate on the underlying motives.