Iranian "Principalists", or conservatives, emphasize their loyalty to the system of "
Guardianship", or rule, by Islamic Jurists established by Ayatollah
Ruhollah Khomeini. They support Supreme Leader
Ali Khamenei and want to preserve the power of the Islamic
jurist Supreme Leader. They split from the
United Principalists Front in the run up to the
Iranian legislative election of 2008 because they believed the pro-Ahmadinejad
Sweet Scent of Service faction had been given too many top positions on the electoral lists. However, many candidates are endorsed by both the Broad Coalition and the United Principalists. They have also said that the
Parliament of Iran should be more independent from the
President of Iran. ==Backers==