Iran's former President Ahmadinejad registers for presidential election

AP , AFP , Sunday 2 Jun 2024

Iran's hardline former President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad registered Sunday as a possible candidate for the presidential election, seeking to regain the country's top political position after a helicopter crash killed the nation's president.

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Iran s former President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad flashes a victory sign as he registers his name as a candidate for the June 28 presidential election at the Interior Ministry, in Tehran, Iran, Sunday, June 2, 2024. AP

 

The populist former leader's registration puts pressure on Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. In office, Ahmadinejad openly challenged the 85-year-old cleric, and his attempt to run in 2021 was barred by authorities.

The firebrand politician’s return comes at a time of heightened tensions between Iran and the West over Tehran’s rapidly advancing nuclear program, its alleged arming of Russia in its war on Ukraine and its wide-reaching crackdowns on dissent.

Ahmadinejad is the most prominent candidate to register so far.

Associated Press journalists in Tehran saw Ahmadinejad,67, arrive at the Interior Ministry and begin the registration process. Before his arrival, his supporters chanted and waved Iranian flags.

He descended the stairs at the ministry, showing his passport as is custom to dozens of photographers and video journalists on hand for the registration process. As a woman processed his candidacy, he sat, turned to the journalists, nodding and smiling for the cameras.

 

 

Ahmadinejad previously served two four-year terms from 2005 to 2013. Under Iranian law, he became eligible to run again after four years out of office, but he remains a polarizing figure even among fellow hard-liners. His disputed re-election in 2009 sparked massive “Green Movement” protests and a sweeping crackdown in which thousands of people were detained and dozens were killed.

Ahmadinejad remains popular among the poor for his populist efforts and home-building programs. Since leaving office, he’s raised his profile via social media and written widely publicized letters to world leaders. He’s also criticized government corruption, though his own administration faced graft allegations and two of his former vice presidents were jailed.

Khamenei warned Ahmadinejad in 2017 that his standing for office again would be a “polarized situation” that would be “harmful for the county.” Khamenei said nothing during Ahmadinejad’s 2021 attempt, when his candidacy was rejected by the 12-member Guardian Council, a panel of clerics and jurists ultimately overseen by Khamenei. That panel has never accepted a woman or anyone calling for radical change to the country’s governance.

That panel could reject Ahmadinejad again. However, the race to replace Raisi has yet to draw a candidate with clear, overwhelming support from Khamenei.

An election is planned June 28 to replace President Ebrahim Raisi, who died in a helicopter crash in May along with seven other people.

Former parliament speaker Ali Larijani, a conservative with strong ties to Iran's former relatively moderate President Hassan Rouhani, has already registered, as has former Iranian Central Bank chief Abdolnasser Hemmati, who also ran in 2021.

Iranian reformist politician Mahmoud Sadeghi also registered for on Sunday, even though the Guardian Council had earlier disqualified him from running in the 2020 legislative elections.

Who else will seek to run remains in question. The country’s acting president, Mohammad Mokhber, previously a behind-the-scenes bureaucrat, could be the front runner because he has already been seen meeting with Khamenei. Also discussed as a possible aspirant is former reformist President Mohammad Khatami, but, as with Ahmadinejad, whether he would be allowed to run is another question.

Former commander in Iran's Revolutionary GuardsVahid Haghanian also registered his candidacy Saturday for the next presidential election, state media reported.

Little information has been made public about Haghanian's career in the Guards, the ideological arm of Iran's armed forces.

The five-day registration period will close on Tuesday, and the Guardian Council is expected to issue its final list of candidates within 10 days. That will allow for a shortened two-week campaign before the vote in late June.

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