Pezeshkian: “I Will Withdraw if Public Opinion Demands It”

Masoud Pezeshkian told a gathering of university students from the Student Basij Organisation that he would withdraw from the election if public opinion demands it, or at the request of the Supreme Leader, but he would not withdraw for factional reasons. Pezeshkian, a Reformist who is popular with some conservative elements of Iranian society (particularly in Iranian Azerbaijan), told the students that he opposes “the view that sees the people as either good or bad. Anyone who works for the growth of this country is a basiji”, adding that his motto was that “knowledge, collectivity and faith are a triangle that moves mountains”. 

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Hajjarian: Tajzadeh will be Disqualified

Reformist activist Saeed Hajjarian told Donya-e-Eqtesad that it is likely that Reformist candidate Mostafa Tajzadeh would be disqualified by the Guardian Council.  However, Hajjarian added that Tajzadeh has had the opportunity to present his plans for reforming Iran, and this would give him the opportunity to organise a political party around this program after the election. Tajzadeh, who announced his candidacy on Sunday, was imprisoned for seven years after the 2009 election protests, adding to the controversy around his candidacy. 

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Leaked Audio Files Dominates News

The leaked Zarif interview dominated news headlines today in Iran. Most media outlets reported it as embarrassing to the Foreign Minister, although some speculated the recordings might help him. Kayhan, the mouthpiece for the Supreme Leader’s Office, was hostile, taking issue with Zarif’s criticisms of IRGC Commander Qasem Soleimani, accusing the interviewer of sedition (he was imprisoned after the 2009 election), and depicting the Foreign Minister as a stooge and sacrificial victim for Western powers. 

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Hashemi-Taba’s Bleak Predictions for the Elections

Prominent Reformist politician Mostafa Hashemi-Taba gave his bleak assessment of the electoral situation in an interview. He stated that neither the Reformists nor the Principalists had strong candidates, and the electorate does not seem that engaged this time. Hashemi-Taba said that while Ebrahim Raisi is something of a favourite, that he will only win if there is a poor turnout.

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Kavakebian: I Don’t Regret Voting for Rouhani

In response to a question about most of Rouhani’s supporter base being Reformists, candidate Mostafa Kavakebian stated that he had no regrets about voting for the President as a Reformist, even when he had been an unsuccessful candidate running against Rouhani. Kavakebian added that this was normal for Reformists: “When our party has a candidate who isn’t approved, we seek out the [approved] candidate that is better than the others; at that time, we recognised it was Rouhani”.

Read the interview at Jahan

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Zare Foumani announces Candidacy

Hojjatoleslam Mohammad Zare Foumani of the People’s Reform Party announced that he will nominate for President, adding that “we supported Mr Rouhani in 2013, which was wrong, and we apologize to the people and hope they will accept our apology”. The People’s Reform Party was led by Mehdi Karroubi until 2009, after which Zare Foumani, who did not dispute the election result, became leader.

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Karroubi is Hospitalised

Mehdi Karroubi, a former candidate who has been under house arrest since opposing the result of the 2009 election, was hospitalised over the weekend. The 83-year-old had broken vertebrae after falling over at home. The home detention without charge for Karroubi and another former candidate, Mir-Hossein Mousavi, remains to sensitive issue for the Iranian government and has emerged already in campaigning.

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Mohsen Hashemi’s Conditions for Running

A member of the Executives of Construction Party, a key Reformist group, told IRNA that the son of former President Rafsanjani, Mohsen Hashemi, has two conditions for running for president: a guarantee that the Guardian Council will approve his candidacy, and united support from all Reformist factions. Both conditions seem unlikely to be confirmed. Hashemi’s sister, Faezeh Hashemi, had also raised the prospect of running although she recently said she will not participate.

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Movement in the Larijani Campaign

Although he has not declared his candidacy yet, former speaker of the parliament Ali Larijani has started showing signs that he is intending to nominate. His social media accounts have increased the number of items they have been sharing, mostly videos of his speeches talking of the issue of Covid, and directly addressing the election itself. Although a conservative, Larijani is considered a viable candidate by the Reformist faction.

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Namazi: “The Greatest Rival for All Candidates is Turnout”

Ali-Mohammad Namazi, a member of the Reformist Executives of Construction Party, told Donya-ye Eqtesad said “the most serious rival for Presidential candidates this time around is turnout. I think only about 20-25% of voters will participate”. Namazi points to a real fear that public dissatisfaction coupled with COVID restrictions will lead to an abysmally low turnout. In the same interview, Namazi stated that Hassan Khomeini’s decision to withdraw from nominating was disappointing for the Reformists, although there was still hope that Mohammad-Javad Zarif might run.

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