Raisi Announced as President Elect

The Ministry of Interior announced the results of the Presidential election at noon. Out of 28.8 million votes, Ebrahim Raisi was declared the winner with about 17.9 million votes (62.1%), Mohsen Rezaei came second with about 3.4 million votes (11.8%), Abdol-Naser Hemmati received about 2.4 million votes (8.3%) and Amir-Hossein Ghazizadeh Hashemi received less than 990,000 votes (3.4%). The Ministry reported that over 4 million votes were invalid (14.4%) and the overall turnout was 48.8%, a drop of 24% from the 2017 election. The election participation rate was particularly low in Tehran, but higher in the provinces.

Read more at Tejarat

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Other Candidates Concede

In the lead-up to the official announcement of Raisi’s victory, each of the other three candidates sent letters of congratulations to the President Elect and conceded defeat. First was Mohsen Rezaei at about 10am, Abdol-Naser Hemmati just before 11am, and finally Amir-Hossein Ghazizadeh Hashemi shortly after 11am. Roughly at the same time, President Hassan Rouhani made a “unofficial” statement to congratulate Raisi.

Read more at BBC Persian

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Zakani Resigns in Favour of Raisi

Ali-Reza Zakani withdrew from the election after attending the Ali Akbar Shrine in the northern Tehran suburb of Chizar. Zakani said of Raisi “I myself will vote for him and I hope that with his election, fundamental reforms will be made in the country”. The Ministry of Interior later requested that Zakani submit a formal resignation, as otherwise his withdrawal is not considered legal. Candidates must resign in writing to the Ministry of Interior before 7am on Thursday to be removed from the ballot.

Read more at Eghtesad

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Jalili Resigns in Favour of Raisi

Saeed Jalili withdrew his candidacy in a statement. Jalili said “now that a large part of society has shown their support for our dear brother Hojjatoleslam Seyyed Ebrahim Raisi, it is appropriate for all the believers of the Revolutionary Front to vote for him”. Jalili encouraged his fellow conservative candidates to also resign in Raisi’s favour and encouraged his supporters to vote for Raisi. 

Read more at Farda

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Reformist Newspaper Editors Support Raisi

Ebrahim Raisi held a meeting with the editors of several Reformist-affiliated media outlets. The editors of Sharq, Donya-e-Eqtesad, the ISNA and several other Reformist-affiliates, alongside the editors of the IRNA news agency, praised Raisi’s performance as Chief Justice and his plans for president. Raisi ominously added in turn that no newspaper had ever been banned under his direction. The editors’ endorsement runs contrary to most other Reformists, who have supported either Abdul Nasser Hemmati or Mohsen Mehr Alizadeh.

Read more at Radio Farda

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Hemmati Jumps on Zakani Rumours

Upon hearing the false news that Ali-Reza Zakani had resigned from the race, Abdol-Naser Hemmati jumped on the news saying it proved the point he had made throughout the debate: that Zakani – along with Ghazizadeh, Jalili and Rezaei – are “cover candidates” for Raisi. However, once it became apparent that the news was false and Zakani was still a candidate, Hemmati deleted the tweet.

Read more at IMNA

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Raisi Visits Stock Exchange

Ebrahim Raisi arrived unannounced at the Tehran Stock Exchange and Securities Hall this morning and held impromptu meetings with officials and senior figures there. Raisi is believed to be the second high-ranking official in the history of the Islamic Republic to visit the Tehran Stock Exchange after the late former President Hashemi Rafsanjani.

Watch video at Hamshahri

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Mottaki Pressures Candidates to Resign for Raisi

Manouchehr Mottaki, spokesman for the Unity Council, one of the main Principalist organisations, has joined the chorus of conservative voices calling for the four conservative candidates (Ghazizadeh, Jalili, Rezaei and Zakani) to stand aside for the consensus candidate, Ebrahim Raisi. Mottaki reminded the candidates of the 2013 election, where the large number of conservative candidates on election day split the conservative vote, resulting in the victory of Moderate candidate Hassan Rouhani. Mottaki did not name any names, but only encourage “the five candidates of the Revolutionary Front” to come together and choose a “consensus”.

Read more at Tasnim

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