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Iran’s top leader has called on the people of the country to take part in a vote on June 18 in which seven candidates will compete.
Iran’s top leader Ali Khamenei has called on Iranians to ignore the call for a boycott of next month’s presidential election after failing to decide to present several important people.
“Don’t pay attention to those who promote that voting is useless,” Khamenei said in a speech to lawmakers via video conference on Thursday, calling on Iranians to “participate” in the June 18 vote.
“The elections are held in one day, but the effect lasts for several years,” he added, according to his official Instagram account.
Members of the exiled opposition have been campaigning on social media demanding that the people of the country abstain from voting.
Two days after Khamenei’s comments to the Guard Council, a 12-member verification body overseen by the supreme leader, accepted Seven of the 592 aspirants are competitors, none of whom are prominent reformers or pragmatists.
Approved by the Council, Ebrahim Raisi is the main judiciary; Mohsen Rezaei, Secretary of the Expedition Board; Former nuclear negotiator Saeed Jalili; Amir Hossein Ghazizadeh Hashemi, parliamentary vice president; Former Vice President Mohsen Mehralizadeh; Abdolnasser Hemmati, governor of the central bank; and legislator Alireza Zakani.
“The Council of Respected Guardians did what it had to do and what it had to do as its duty, [and] he determined the candidates, ”Khamenei said.
There are two main blocs on Iran’s political spectrum: reformists, who are more liberal, and principled, who are conservative in the country’s politics. Although the division of factions is not so simple (analysts have noted that there are several perspectives on important issues within each bloc), Iran’s ruling elite is generally divided among a pragmatic faction that aims to improve international relations with the West. they are wary of reform.
The disqualifications of the most prominent pragmatists and reformists, such as former parliamentary speaker Ali Larijani and current reformist first vice president Eshaq Jahangiri, are believed to further strengthen Raisi’s conservative stance. the main candidate.
In the 2017 elections, Raisi came in second with 15.8 million votes, behind incumbent reformist President Hassan Rouhani, who garnered 23.5 million.
Earlier this month, the Guardian Council said it would consider candidates between the ages of 40 and 75 with no criminal record – including political disagreement – and be able to prove at least four years of senior management experience.
Raisi said this week that since he heard about the latest list, Fars had leaked a tough news website on Monday night that he had tried to pressure senior officials to classify other candidates to make the election “more competitive”. .
Unconfirmed reports also said on Tuesday that Rouhani had sent a letter to Khamene allowing him to classify reformist and moderate candidates to level the playing field.
Opinion polls, including on Iranian state television this month, suggest that turnout could be as high as 30 percent, significantly lower than in previous elections.
The election campaign will run until June 16, and candidates will be required to participate in three televised debates.
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