In the upcoming parliamentary election in Iran, the hardliners have good chances again after the controversial disqualification of moderate candidates. There are doubts that they will get a grip on the country's problems.
Tehran (dpa) - The parliamentary election in Iran started on Friday. More than 7000 candidates apply for the 290 mandates.
The ballot was overshadowed by the controversial rejection of moderate candidates who are close to President Hassan Ruhani. Almost 75 percent of the candidates from the Ruhani camp are said to have been disqualified by the Guardian Council, which according to the constitution is responsible for the ideological qualifications of the candidates.
This gives the Ruhani opposition the best chance of winning an election again after seven years. The coalition of conservatives and hardliners with the former police chief Mohammed Bagher Ghalibaf as the top candidate could, according to various forecasts, get hold of the politically important 30 seats in the capital Tehran and thus celebrate their political comeback after years of absence.
Almost 58 out of the 83 million nationwide are eligible to vote, but many observers assume that voter turnout will be low. According to their assessment, most people believe that Parliament, regardless of the constellation, is unable to solve the country's political and economic problems. Rather, these can only be managed through a new foreign policy, in particular a change in the Middle East strategy and negotiations with the arch enemy USA. The 290 MPs had no authority in this regard.
The polling stations are open nationwide from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. local time (5.30 a.m. to 3.30 p.m. CET). So the first one - as always in elections - chooses Iran's Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. The Ministry of the Interior is expected to extend the election until midnight (21:30 CET) in large cities. The results from the small provinces will be announced on Saturday. In the larger cities, the counts take up to 72 hours.
Iranian state television web portal, Persian