| Date of Election | 24 July 1981 |
| Number of Eligible Voters | 22,687,017 |
| Number of Actual Voters | 14,573,803 |
| Voter Turnout (%) | 64.24 |
| Number of Candidates Registered to Run | 71 |
| Number of Candidates Allowed to Run (1) | 4 |
| Percentage of Candidates Allowed to Run | 5.63% |
| Election Winner | Mohammad-Ali Rajai |
| Number and Percentage of Votes Received by Winner | 12,779,050 (90.0%) |
| First Runner-Up | Abbas Sheybani |
| First Runner-Up Number and Percentage of Votes Received | 658,498 (4.53%) |
| Margin of Victory by the Winner | 85.5% |
| Names and Votes of Other Candidates | Seyyed Ali-Akbar Parvaresh, 339,646 (2.67%)
Habibollah Asgaroladi-Mosalman, 249,457 (1.72%) |
Sources:
Ministry of Interior: http://www.moi.ir
http://www.etemaad.ir/Released/87-12-17/313.htm
http://www.farsnews.com/newstext.php?nn=8802260290
Notes:
Beginning with this election, the Guardian Council started to disqualify candidates.
There is no public data available on the number of female candidates who submitted their candidacy.
(1) Candidates submitting their candidacy are first vetted by the Ministry of Interior and then by the Guardian Council. The number we show under `candidates allowed to run` represents the number of candidates allowed to run after the vetting processes by both the Ministry of Interior and the Guardian Council are completed.
Breakdown of Votes Based on Province
| Province | Eligible Voters | Votes | Turnout (percent) |
| East Azerbaijan | 1,938,108 | 1,212,445 | 62.56 |
| West Azerbaijan | 896,767 | 411,088 | 45.84 |
| Esfahan | 1,488,622 | 1,186,355 | 79.69 |
| Alborz | NA | NA | NA |
| Ilam | 152,856 | 120,480 | 78.82 |
| Bushehr | 247,233 | 164,010 | 66.34 |
| Tehran | 4,260,545 | 2,541,323 | 59.65 |
| Chahar Mahal and Bakhtiari | 251,700 | 171,443 | 68.11 |
| Khorasan | 2,249,140 | 1,549,868 | 68.91 |
| Khuzestan | 1,279,703 | 582,956 | 45.55 |
| Zanjan | 705,450 | 572,983 | 81.22 |
| Semnan | 203,413 | 169,365 | 83.26 |
| Sistan and Baluchestan | 457,280 | 136,290 | 29.8 |
| Fars | 1,379,264 | 984,837 | 71.4 |
| Kurdistan | 486,931 | 212,884 | 43.72 |
| Kerman | 707,790 | 518,294 | 73.23 |
| Kermanshah | 664,862 | 352,322 | 52.99 |
| Kohgiluyeh and Buyer Ahmad | 155,767 | 104,375 | 67.01 |
| Gilan | 1,026,556 | 643,461 | 62.68 |
| Lorestan | 574,964 | 461,961 | 80.35 |
| Mazandaran | 1,550,718 | 1,135,880 | 73.25 |
| Markazi | 751,455 | 424,767 | 56.53 |
| Hormozgan | 321,333 | 161,591 | 50.29 |
| Hamadan | 682,802 | 510,899 | 74.82 |
| Yazd | 253,758 | 202,992 | 79.99 |
| Iran (total) | 22,687,017 | 14,573,803
(including Iranians abroad) |
64.24 |
Due to the assassination of President Rajai, a second presidential election was held in October 1981.
| Date of Election | 2 October 1981 |
| Number of Eligible Voters | 22,687,017 |
| Number of Actual Voters | 16,847,717 |
| Voter Turnout Rate | 74.26% |
| Number of Candidates Registered to Run | 46 |
| Number of Candidates Allowed to Run | 4 |
| Percentage of Candidates Allowed to Run | 8.69% |
| Election Winner | Seyyed Ali Khamenei |
| Number and Percentage of Votes Received by Winner | 16,008,579 (95.05%) |
| First Runner-Up | Seyyed Ali-Akbar Parvaresh |
| First Runner-Up Number and Percentage of Votes Received | 341,874 (2.02%) |
| Margin of Victory by the Winner | 93.0% |
| Names and Votes of Other Candidates | Seyyed Reza Zavarehi, 59,058 (0.36%)
Hasan Ghafouri-Fard, 80,545 (0.27%) |
| Nullified Votes | 356,411 |
Sources:
Ministry of Interior: http://www.moi.ir
http://www.etemad.ir/Released/87-12-17/313.htm
http://www.farsnews.com/newstext.php?nn=8802260290
Notes:
Despite being approved to stand for elections, Mohammad-Reza Mahdavi-Kani quit the race in favor of Seyyed Ali Khamenei three days before election day.
| Province | Eligible Voters | Votes | Turnout (percent) |
| East Azerbaijan | 1,938,108 | 1,524,463 | 78.66 |
| West Azerbaijan | 896,767 | 526,671 | 58.73 |
| Esfahan | 1,488,622 | 1,243,068 | 83.5 |
| Ilam | 152,856 | 163,655 | 107.06 |
| Bushehr | 247,233 | 186,727 | 75.53 |
| Tehran | 4,260,545 | 2,752,151 | 64.6 |
| Chahar Mahal and Bakhtiari | 251,700 | 184,097 | 73.14 |
| Razavi Khorasan | 2,249,140 | 1,668,168 | 74.17 |
| Khuzestan | 1,279,703 | 697,353 | 54.49 |
| Zanjan | 705,450 | 630,538 | 89.38 |
| Semnan | 203,413 | 177,714 | 87.37 |
| Sistan and Baluchestan | 457,280 | 217,684 | 47.6 |
| Fars | 1,379,264 | 1,207,693 | 87.56 |
| Kurdistan | 486,931 | 235,980 | 48.46 |
| Kerman | 707,790 | 590,415 | 83.42 |
| Kermanshah | 664,862 | 413,586 | 62.21 |
| Kohgiluyeh and Buyer Ahmad | 155,767 | 136,592 | 87.69 |
| Gilan | 1,026,556 | 661,192 | 64.41 |
| Lorestan | 574,964 | 670,085 | 116.54 |
| Mazandaran | 1,550,718 | 1,144,141 | 73.78 |
| Markazi | 751,455 | 755,174 | 100.49 |
| Hormozgan | 321,333 | 205,644 | 64 |
| Hamadan | 682,802 | 533,618 | 78.15 |
| Yazd | 253,758 | 210,972 | 83.14 |
| Iran (total) | 22,687,017 | 16,847,717
(including Iranians abroad) |
74.26 |