Reformists leading in Iran parliament vote

However, conservatives say strong economic growth will only be possible if an emphasis is placed on domestic production under a “resistance economy” model more in tune with the ideals of Iran’s 1979 Islamic revolution.

A list headed by Rouhani and Rafsanjani also took an early lead in a separate vote for the Assembly of Experts, a top clerical body tasked with selecting the supreme leader when the position becomes vacant.

Turnout figures and other statistics were not immediately available, though Interior Minister Abdolreza Rahmani Fazli predicted late Thursday there would be a turnout of 70 per cent. Polls are scheduled to close at 6 p.m., though extending voting hours is common in Iran. Iranians across the Islamic Repu…

Early results show President Hassan Rouhani’s moderates and reformists may get to dominate the powerful committee.

Iranians voted Friday in the country’s first election since its landmark nuclear deal with world powers, deciding whether to further empower moderates backing President Hassan Rouhani or support hard-liners long suspicious of the West.

The high-stake elections may determine whether current moderate president Hasan Rouhani will be re-appointed. But the capital, Tehran, appears to have seen sweeping gains for Rouhani’s supporters. But the higher-than-expected turnout in the elections was enough to convince the Interior Ministry to extend the voting time three times.

“Initial returns gave 29 of Tehran’s 30 seats to reform and center-right candidates, with Gholamali Haddad-Adel the only hardliner”. Just two hard-liners are now among the 16.

Because of Khamenei’s health and age, 76, the new assembly members who serve eight-year terms are likely to choose his successor. “Even in constituencies with one candidate, the results will be announced once all votes have been counted”.

One early result of the elections could be to allow the government to offer new oil and gas contracts to foreign firms, a cornerstone of its plans to raise energy production after global sanctions on Tehran were lifted last month.

Rafsanjani called for national unity following the divisive vote, according to Iran’s state-run news agency, IRNA. If they voted on Friday it would probably be to Rouhani’s advantage.

Some 55 million Iranians were eligible to cast their ballots at around 53,000 polling stations across the country.

Polls were closed at midnight in Tehran, and officials immediately began counting the ballots afterward. In the capital, officials counting the ballots in three different districts told The Associated Press that reformists were leading their hard-line rivals. The officials requested anonymity because they were not authorized to speak with reporters.

A substantial reformist bloc could herald a crucial shift in Iran’s internal politics.

“The time after elections is the time for hard work to build the country”.

But their hold on power was broken in the next election in 2004, when reformist candidates were largely barred from running.

Ahmadinejad’s election victory in 2005 sealed the movement’s downfall.