Reformers and moderates could control Iran’s Parliament
Surveys and early results see conservatives losing. Partial results from about 50 towns across Iran show conservatives trailing reformers and moderates. In Tehran, election officials told the Associated Press that reformers are leading in three districts.
Tehran (AsiaNews/Agencies) – Early results from Iran’s elections suggest that reformers and moderates might hold a majority in the next Iranian parliament.
None of the three competing political camps seems poised to gain a majority in the 290-seat parliament, surveys indicated yesterday. However, reports from semi-official agencies Fars and Mehr said that the conservatives are going down to defeat.
Partial results from some 50 towns across the country show conservatives trailing reformers and their moderate allies. In Tehran, election officials told the Associated Press that reformers are leading over their rivals.
Interior Minister Abdolreza Rahmani Fazli said that about 70 per cent of Iran’s 55 million eligible voters cast their ballot.
Yesterday, Iranians also voted for the country’s 88-member Assembly of Experts, a deliberative body of Mujtahids (Islamic theologians) charged with electing and monitoring Iran’s Supreme Leader. The speaker of the Assembly is Mohamad Yazdi, a conservative.
Yesterday’s elections are particularly important for Iranian President Hassan Rouhani because it is his first electoral test following the nuclear deal and the end of sanctions.
If the reformist camp wins, it would strengthen the president’s policy of openness.
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