The legal regime of political parties in the Islamist states

The nature of the relationship between religion and state is a controversial issue that attracts the attention of both political scientists and clergy for a long time. In the first quarter of the 21st century, this ancient debate is revitalized especially in the Islamic world by the influence of the September 11 attacks and the Arab Spring. Islamism and democracy are at the focal points of the debate. What is the relationship between the concept of democracy and Islam? The prerequisite for examining the function of political parties in countries that adopted the Islamist ideology is to find a meaningful answer to this question. The aim of this article is to define Islamism, to explain the types and general principles of Islamism in an unbiased manner, to identify the relationship between Islam and democracy, and then to give information about the regulations on political parties at three countries adopting Islamist ideology: Iran, Malaysia, and Saudi Arabia. As a result, it has been determined that Islamism is a modern ideology which ideological roots spread to Islam. And it has been determined that Islamism argues that the ideal order will be achieved by shaping the existing distorted orders only according to the principles of Islam. The relationship between Islam and democracy has been shaped by the tawhid understanding of countries such as Iran, Malaysia, and Saudi Arabia, which have adopted the Islamist ideology, and the understanding of tawhid has a direct impact on the regimes concerning political parties.