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Moderate Pezeshkian wins run-off presidential election in Iran

Observers say that the election unlikely to change policies, may shape Khamenei succession

By Staff Writer Last updated Jul 6, 2024

TEHRAN: Masoud Pezeshkian has won the run off presidential election in Iran held following the death of President Ibrahim Raisi in a helicopter crash in May this year.

Saeed Jalili, the hardline candidate for the slot, accepted defeat, according to local media.

According to the interior ministry, Pezeshkian grabbed over 16,300,000 votes while his rival candidate scored 13,500,000 votes. Born on September 29, 1954, Pezeshkian is a moderate and a cardiac surgeon by profession. He earlier remained health minister of the country.

In the earlier polls, none of the four candidates could win at least 50pc of the total votes cast. In the June 28 election, the turnout remained 40pc, the lowest since the 1979 revolution in Iran.

According to Reuters news agency, while the election is expected to have little impact on the Islamic Republic’s policies, the president will be closely involved in selecting the successor to Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Iran’s 85-year-old Supreme Leader, who calls all the shots on top matters of state.

Voter turnout has plunged over the past four years, which critics say underlines that support for clerical rule has eroded at a time of growing public discontent over economic hardship and curbs on political and social freedoms.