Gharahkhani was first elected as a deputy representative to the parliament in the 2009 election.[2] He received a standing ovation at the Labour Party national convention in 2011 for his speech about his journey from Tehran to Drammen.[3] Hoping to be the first mayor in Norway with a non-Western immigrant background, Gharahkani was the Labour party candidate for the mayor of Drammen in the 2011 local election.