Unofficial reports on Saturday estimated turnout in Iran’s parliamentary election, seen as a test of the clerical establishment’s legitimacy, at about 40%, which would be the lowest turnout since the 1979 Islamic revolution.
An Iranian woman casts her vote during parliamentary elections at a polling station in Tehran, Iran, March 1, 2024. Majid Asgaripour/WANA (West Asia News Agency) via Reuters
Unofficial reports on Saturday estimated turnout in Iran’s parliamentary election, seen as a test of the clerical establishment’s legitimacy, at about 40%, which would be the lowest turnout since the 1979 Islamic revolution.
With heavyweight moderates and conservatives staying out and reformists calling Friday's election unfree and unfair, the contest was essentially among hardliners and low-key conservatives who proclaim loyalty to Islamic revolutionary ideals.
The interior ministry may announce the official turnout later on Saturday.
Tehran's rulers needed a high turnout to repair their legitimacy, badly damaged by anti-government protests in 2022-23 that spiralled into some of the worst political turmoil since the revolution.
But official surveys suggested only about 41% of eligible Iranians would vote. That appeared to be the case, as Hamshahri newspaper said more than 25 million people, or 41% of eligible voters, had turned out.
Iran's turnout hit a record low 42.5% in 2020 parliamentary elections, while about 62% of voters participated in 2016.
Hamshahri called Friday's turnout "a 25-million slap” to calls for an election boycott, in a front-page headline next to a depiction of a ballot paper smacking U.S. President Joe Biden in the face.
The election coincided with growing frustration over Iran's economic woes and restrictions on political and social freedoms.
It was twinned with a vote for the 88-seat Assembly of Experts, an influential body tasked with choosing the 84-year-old Khamenei's successor.
Editing by William Mallard
Pakistan's army chief Asim Munir will visit Tehran on Monday to continue efforts to bring peace and security to the region, Iran's foreign ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei said on Sunday, according to a statement by the ministry.
An Iranian military official called on Qatar on Saturday to transfer detained Iranian pilots to a hospital on land, saying they were being held on water and were in "poor physical condition", Tasnim news agency reported.
The United States and Iran exchanged defiant messages ahead of Monday's scheduled announcement of new U.S. economic sanctions that could impact the Islamic Republic and Tehran's most important trading partners including China.
To make this website run properly and to improve your experience, we use cookies. For more detailed information, please check our Cookie Policy.
Necessary cookies enable core functionality. The website cannot function properly without these cookies, and can only be disabled by changing your browser preferences.