“Reformist” Masoud Pezeshkian has won the second round of Iran’s presidential elections and will be the country’s next president, the Iranian Election Commission said.
Pezeshkian, a 69-year-old heart surgeon, won 53.6 percent of the vote against hardliner Saeed Jalili, who got 44.3 percent, in an election that saw 49.9 percent of voters turn out and 30,573,931 votes.
“Therefore, Mr. Masoud Pezeshkian is the winner of the 14th presidential election of the Islamic Republic of Iran,” Iranian Election Commission spokesman Mohsen Eslami announced at a press conference.
The former health minister and parliamentarian became the ninth president in the history of the Islamic Republic of Iran and will succeed Ebrahim Raisi, who died in a helicopter crash in May.
Iran’s president-elect was a little-known politician at the start of his campaign, but he gained popularity with a message of “moderation”, rapprochement with the West and criticism of the veil. Despite his efforts to build an image as a reformist, Pezeshkian supported a bill in the Iranian parliament in 2010 to encourage women who flout the rules on wearing the hijab (the Islamic veil) to be “shamed” in public.
His election also represents a vote of discontent with the policies of Raisi, whose government has increased social and political repression, while his campaign has fueled fear of Jalili, an avowed radical with a reputation for being “uncompromising.”
Pezeshkian will become the first so-called “reformist” president, a member of a political group seeking some openness, in years in the country, at a time of strong regional tensions due to the war in Gaza, but also within Iran due to policies such as the imposition of the veil and the lack of freedoms.
The Iranian president has the power to decide on domestic issues and, to a lesser extent, on foreign and security policy, where the supreme leader, Ali Khamenei, acts as head of state with vast powers. Khamenei also has the power to decide which candidates are allowed to run in elections, which highlights the limited scope for any kind of reform that would alter the foundations of Iran’s theocratic regime.
In a statement after the election results were announced, Khamenei “advised” Pezeshkian to continue with Ebrahim Raisi’s policies: “I also advise Dr. Pezeshkian, the president-elect, to trust in the merciful Allah, to fix his gaze on high and clear horizons and to continue the path of the martyr Raisi, making use of the country’s abundant capabilities, especially the young, revolutionary and faithful human resources,” Khamenei said in a message to congratulate the president-elect, the Tehran Times reported.
During Raisi’s tenure, the country’s crackdown on critics, activists, journalists and especially women for not wearing the Islamic veil intensified, sparking the largest protests against Iranian authorities in years, resulting in 500 deaths.
The 49.9% turnout in the second round represents an improvement over the 39.9% in the first round. This 39.9% represented the highest abstention rate in the history of the Islamic Republic of Iran, which has always promoted the image of high participation as proof of popular support and legitimacy for the ayatollahs’ regime.
In message to Iran, president-elect offers ‘hand of friendship to all’
In a message to the Iranian population this Saturday (6), president-elect Masoud Pezeshkian offered a “hand of friendship to everyone”, in a tone of national conciliation after winning the country’s presidential elections.
“We will extend the hand of friendship to everyone. Everyone is from this country. We must use everyone for the progress of the country. They are our brothers,” the president-elect told state television in his first statements after winning the presidential election.
“There was no party or support. These people came with love and helped and I am grateful,” he added, about his followers.
Pezeshkian made no reference to his international policies in these first statements, after promising a rapprochement with the West and trying to revive the moribund 2015 nuclear deal during the election campaign.
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