The snap Presidential election in Iran has commenced to choose a successor for Ebrahim Raisi, who tragically died in a helicopter crash on May 19, 2024. The election, initially scheduled for 2025, has been expedited due to Raisi’s untimely death. The election process and the key highlights surrounding this significant political event are summarized below:
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- Polling Details: Voting began on Friday for the snap Presidential election in Iran to elect the successor of Ebrahim Raisi.
- Eligibility: Any Iranian citizen aged 18 or older is eligible to vote.
- Polling Stations: There are 58,640 polling stations set up across the country, located in public spaces such as mosques and schools.
- Voting Process: Voters must complete an application and present their national ID card to vote. They use a secret ballot to write down the candidate’s name and code, which is then deposited into a ballot box.
- Run-off Round: If no candidate receives at least 50 percent plus one vote from all ballots cast, including blank votes, a run-off round between the top two candidates is held on the first Friday following the election results announcement.
- Supreme Leader’s Vote: Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, cast his vote and encouraged high voter turnout, calling the election an “important political test.”
- Candidates Withdrawal: Two candidates, Amir-Hossein Ghazizadeh Hashemi and Alireza Zakani, withdrew from the race right before the polls, urging others to strengthen the “front of the revolution.”
- Election Rescheduling: The Presidential election was rescheduled from 2025 to 2024 due to the death of Raisi in a helicopter crash.
- Tragic Incident: The crash that killed Raisi also claimed the lives of Iran’s foreign minister, Hossein Amirabdollahian, and other Iranian officials.
- Raisi’s Role: Ebrahim Raisi, 63, was a significant figure in the succession planning for Iran’s 85-year-old supreme leader and was expected to win another term in office.
