As of: March 1, 2024, 10:45 a.m
By: Erkan Pehlivan
Comments
Press
Split
A new parliament will be elected in Iran today.
Although there are significantly more women running, there is little likelihood of a change in government leadership.
Tehran – With no prospect of change, Iran will elect a new parliament and the so-called Council of Experts made up only of clergy on Friday (March 1st).
Political and religious leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was the first to cast his vote, state television reported.
These are the first elections in Iran since the mass protests following the death of 22-year-old Kurdish woman Mahsa Amini in police custody in September 2022.
Elections in Iran are taking place in the shadow of women's protests
The security forces took massive action against the demonstrators during the months-long protests under the motto “Women, Life, Freedom”.
Several hundred people were killed and thousands arrested.
Participation in the election is now considered an important indicator of the mood in the country.
While opposition members living in exile called for a boycott, Khamenei again personally called on Friday to take part in the vote.
The imprisoned Nobel Peace Prize winner Narges Mohammadi also called for a boycott.
The camp of reform politicians is extremely weakened.
Conservative forces in particular are fighting for power.
Around 61 million voters in the Islamic Republic were called upon to elect the so-called Council of Experts in addition to the parliament (Majles).
This is an influential body of Islamic scholars.
The body, which is elected for eight years, includes 88 Shiite clergy who determine the successor to the religious leader in the event of his death.
Khamenei is considered the most powerful man in Iran and will turn 85 in April.
Only 144 candidates are eligible for the council.
The low number was justified by strict theological requirements.
Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Iran's political and religious leader, casts his vote.
© IMAGO/Rouzbeh Fouladi
Half of people in Iran indifferent to choice
Experts had predicted low voter turnout.
According to a state television poll, more than half of citizens were indifferent to the election.
In the parliamentary election in 2020, voter turnout was 42.57 percent.
This was the lowest figure since the Islamic Revolution in 1979. The polls are expected to consolidate the power of the ruling conservatives in parliament.
Reform-oriented forces can only hope for a few mandates because the majority of their candidates were not allowed to stand for election.
Record: Twice as many women are standing for election as last time
There are 1,713 women on the list of around 15,000 approved candidates published by the Iranian Guardian Council ahead of Friday's election.
That is more than twice as many women as in the last election in 2020. Candidates in Iran do not run with parties, but rather organize themselves through lists.
In Tehran, for example, 30 seats are being elected for the National Assembly, and the alliances are each presenting 30 candidates.
In the capital, half a dozen conservative groups are competing for dominance.
My news
Reveal secret service information?
Security expert horrified by Scholzlesen
1 hour ago
Expert discovers two pithy statements in Putin's speech that hardly anyone noticed
New asylum rule: In future, dental treatment will only be possible after three years - exception for Ukrainians
Ukraine Succeeds in Fierce Blow with HIMARS: Russian Soldiers Die During Their Ceremony Reading
1 hour ago
Unprecedented threatening backdrop before Navalny's funeral - notice appears at church
Lindner sounds the alarm after the Greens' initiative: read “Call to break the coalition”.
Actual power in Iran remains with the state leadership and the revolutionary guard
The Parliament is Iran's legislative institution.
The real power, however, is concentrated in the state leadership, with religious leader Khamenei at the top.
The president is also elected by the people as head of government every four years and appoints the ministers.
The Security Council also has extensive powers.
The Revolutionary Guards (IRGC), Iran's elite military force, have expanded their influence at all levels in recent decades and have become an economic empire.
(erpe/dpa/AFP)