With the contours of the Islamic Republic to be determined later, and considering the repression unleashed by the new revolutionary government, the March 1979 referendum cannot be considered a legitimate exercise of state power. Nevertheless, the revolutionary government did enjoy considerable popular support. Within days of the revolution’s victory on February 11, 1979, sham trials and summary executions started. Between that date and April 1, 1979—the date on which the Islamic Republic was formally established after the referendum—at least seventy-five people were executed, according to the archive maintained by the Abdorrahman Boroumand Center.
