Iranians have voted for a new president following the death of Ebrahim Raisi in a helicopter crash last month, choosing from four candidates loyal to the supreme leader.
The election comes at a time of growing public frustration reflected in low turnouts, regional tensions over the war in Gaza, and increased Western pressure over Iran’s nuclear program.
The clerical establishment needed a high turnout to offset a legitimacy crisis fuelled by public discontent over economic hardship and curbs on political and social freedom.
Polling ended at midnight in Iran after being extended three times for a total of six hours.
With over 3.8 million ballots from Friday’s election counted so far, sole moderate Masoud Pezeshkian has won over 1,595,000 votes and his hardline challenger former nuclear negotiator Saeed Jalili gained about 1,594,000, interior ministry official Mohsen Eslami told state TV early on Saturday.
Iran’s Tasnim news agency said a run-off election was “very likely” to pick the next president following .
While the election is unlikely to bring a major shift in the Islamic Republic’s policies since Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei calls the shots on top state matters, the president runs the government day-to-day and can influence the tone of Iran’s foreign and domestic policy.
The clerical establishment sought a high turnout to offset a legitimacy crisis fuelled by public discontent over economic hardship and curbs on political and social freedom.
Masoud Pezeshkian is the sole reformist candidate in Iran’s presidential elections. Source: AAP / Majid Khahi/AP
A hardline watchdog body, made up of six clerics and six jurists aligned with Khamenei, approved only six from an initial pool of 80. Two hardline candidates subsequently dropped out.
Three candidates are hardliners and Pezeshkian is a low-profile comparative moderate, backed by the reformist faction that has largely been sidelined in Iran in recent years.
A source close to Pezeshkian had earlier told the Reuters news agency that “so far, from the votes counted in small towns and villages, Pezeshkian is ahead of his rivals”.
Prominent among the remaining hardliners are Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf, parliament speaker and former commander of the powerful Revolutionary Guards, and Jalili, who served for four years in Khamenei’s office.
Critics of Iran’s clerical rule say that low turnouts in recent years show the system’s legitimacy has eroded.
Turnout was 48 per cent in the 2021 presidential election and a record low of 41 per cent of people voted in a parliamentary election in March.
Iran’s clerical establishment needed a high voter turnout to offset a legitimacy crisis, but activists encouraged a boycott of the elections. Source: AAP / Stringer/EPA
“Based on unconfirmed reports, the election is very likely heading to a second round. Based on the votes counted so far, Jalili and Pezeshkian will compete in a run-off election,” Tasnim reported.
If no candidate wins at least 50 per cent plus one vote from all ballots cast, including blank votes, a run-off between the top two candidates is held on the first Friday after the result is declared.
All four candidates have vowed to revive the flagging economy, beset by mismanagement, state corruption and sanctions re-imposed since 2018, after the United States ditched Tehran’s 2015 nuclear pact with six world powers.
Pezeshkian is faithful to Iran’s theocratic rule, but advocates detente with the West, economic reform, social liberalisation and political pluralism. “We will respect the hijab law, but there should never be any intrusive or inhumane behaviour toward women,” Pezeshkian said after casting his vote.
He was referring to , in 2022 while in morality police custody for allegedly violating the mandatory Islamic dress code.
The unrest sparked by Amini’s death spiralled into the biggest show of opposition to Iran’s clerical rulers in years.
Pezeshkian’s chances hinge on reviving the enthusiasm of reform-minded voters who have largely stayed away from the polls for the last four years as a mostly youthful population chafes at political and social curbs.
He could also benefit from his rivals’ failure to consolidate the hardline vote.
In the past few weeks, Iranians have made wide use of the hashtag #ElectionCircus on X, with some activists at home and abroad calling for a boycott, saying a high turnout would only serve to legitimise the Islamic Republic.
