Supreme Leader Ali Hosseini Khamenei promised on Tuesday to exert zero influence in the June 18 election that will see relatively moderate President Hassan Rouhani replaced after fulfilling two terms. Ahmadinejad entered the interior ministry on Wednesday, the second day of candidate registration , with a crowd of his supporters surrounding him — breaking COVID protocols that allow candidates to only be accompanied by one person into the registration area.
Screaming and chanting slogans, some of his entourage scuffled with interior ministry staff as he was entering. After registering, Ahmadinejad climbed a fence outside to wave to his fervent supporters. In a press conference following registration, the former president whose controversial re-election sparked the Green Movement and protests, cast doubt on the veracity and popularity of Iranian elections in the years following his presidency. According to the election headquarters, more than 59 million Iranians will be eligible to vote.
But, as with the parliamentary elections in February , which saw the lowest turnout in at least 40 years, the presidential election is also expected to see low turnout. Registration closes on Saturday afternoon, and the main candidates for the upcoming elections have yet to formally register.
Reports suggest judiciary chief Ebrahim Raisi will sign up, which would potentially make him the top candidate as he enjoys widespread backing from fellow conservative politicians. Parliamentary speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf has reportedly told lawmakers he will not run and will support Raisi.
Both men ran unsuccessfully against Rouhani in Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, shows his inked finger to the media before casting his ballot for the parliamentary elections at a polling station on March 14, in Tehran, Iran. May 25, , PM. Tags: Elections , Iran. Argument Sina Toossi. November 12, , AM.
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Or are they? The Month in World Photos. Argument Adem K. Analysis Edward Alden. The speculation seemingly started when Ahmadinejad began to make a series of provincial visits three months before the February parliamentary elections. Some analysts assumed that the campaign-like visits were attempts to lobby support for other candidates or perhaps himself.
One popular post is a deepfake of Ahmadinejad as Game of Thrones character Daenerys Targaryen, the mother of dragons, as she delivers a fiery speech. Another popularly shared deepfake depicts Ahmadinejad as Bob Ross, the late American painter and host of The Joy of Painting, a popular program on Iranian state media. Remember what a better era it was?
The Ahmadinejad years were marred by the strangling of the middle class, in part due to his mismanagement, inflationary economic policies and multilateral sanctions imposed on Iran over its nuclear program. Some memes portray the traditionally bearded Ahmadinejad with a mustache and sunglasses, which caught enough attention for Tehran daily, Hamshahri , to publish a piece on August 14 explaining that the images were photoshopped.
Alongside the Mamouti posts, there are photos of Ahmadinejad and videos of speeches accompanied by a series of hashtags, often referring to his bahar , or spring coalition.
This was followed by an interview with Hamshahri on July 3, in which Ahmadinejad was asked about his predictions for We must think about today… Many great things can happen in one year. In April , Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei asked Ahmadinejad to stay out of the election when rumors emerged he was gearing up to run again. Despite this, the former president registered alongside his former Vice President, Hamid Baghaei.
The Guardian Council, a vetting body dominated by clerics chosen by the Supreme Leader, disqualified both a week later.
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