Seven of About 590 Candidates Approved to Run in Iran s Presidential Election
On 5/25/21 at 9:43 AM EDT
Seven of about 590 candidates were approved Tuesday to run in Iran s presidential election on June 18, with some barred from running because of their alliances to President Hassan Rouhani.
The most prominent candidate is Ebrahim Raisi, Iran s judiciary chief and a cleric who is linked to mass executions in the country in 1988. Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei is believed to favor Raisi.
Raisi said he wants election authorities to reconsider some of the candidates that were prevented from running. I have made contacts and I am holding consultations to make the election scene more competitive and participatory, he tweeted.
Ebrahim Raisi, the former head of the Astan Quds Razavi religious foundation, with Iran’s Supreme Leader (File)
UPDATE, MAY 25: Iran’s Guardian Council has approved only seven candidates for the June 18 Presidential election.
Spokesman Abbas Ali Kadkhodaei said the list was sent to the Interior Ministry late Monday. He did not give the names of the approved candidates.
Rumors have circulated that the Council had again blocked some leading politicians from candidacy, including 1st Vice President Es’haq Jahangiri and former Parliament Speaker Ali Larijani.
The claims were fed by Fars, the outlet of the Revolutionary Guards. The elite military organization is opposed to both Jahangiri, who is backed by reformist factions, and Larijani, who has criticized the hardline favorite Ebrahim Raisi.
Only Seven Candidates Approved For Iran s June Presidential Vote
May 25, 2021 07:36 GMT
Share
share
Print
An Iranian hard-line constitutional watchdog has approved seven candidates to run in next month s presidential election amid reports several high-profile candidacies were disqualified from running.
State television quoted the spokesman of the Guardians Council on May 25 as saying only seven candidates had been approved out of some 590 who registered by the panel overseen by Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
The spokesman, Abbas Ali Kadkhodaei, did not name those selected. He said the Interior Ministry would announce the list later, triggering the campaign season ahead of the June 18 vote to succeed to outgoing President Hassan Rohani.
Iran state TV: 7 approved for June 18 presidential election - Medicine Hat NewsMedicine Hat News medicinehatnews.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from medicinehatnews.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.