Iran Gears Up for Another Epic Election

Date: 19 February 2020 - 22:12

News ID: ۷۶۳۶۲

TEHRAN (Dispatches) -- Iranians are going to the polls Friday in the first general elections since the U.S. imposed sanctions following the pullout from the 2015 nuclear deal.
Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei on Tuesday called on Iranians to vote, saying it was "not only a revolutionary and national responsibility, but also a religious duty”.
Directly or indirectly U.S. sanctions have hit almost all sectors of Iran’s economy and it is the economy that is on voters’ minds during this election season.
Principlists are expected to make an overwhelming resurgence in Friday’s election, which comes after months of steeply escalating tensions between Iran and the United States.
Their gains would be made at the expense of those who back President Hassan Rouhani, who was re-elected in 2017 promising people the benefits of engagement with the West which never materialized.
A week of campaigning came to an end on Wednesday, before a day of silence on the eve of polling day.
Thousands of hopefuls are running for 290 seats across the country. Some candidates were barred from standing by the Guardian Council, the body that vets election candidates in Iran.
But the Council said Wednesday it was neutral in its dealings with all political camps and acted in accordance with the law when it blocked their candidacy.
"The Guardian Council follows the laws and regulations parliament has passed at different times,” said its spokesman Abbas Ali Kadkhodaee.
"This time, just like at previous (elections), we have tried to properly follow the law,” he told a news conference. "The Council has never had a political view... It approaches political factions with closed eyes.
"What it does judge is the evidence in the cases of the candidates and then it only acts in accordance with the law passed by parliament.”
President Rouhani said Wednesday taking part in the elections would give Iran the "strength and unity” needed in its stand against the United States.
"We are going to the polls to choose the best people for parliament, which is a very important institution,” he said in televised remarks after a meeting of his cabinet.
"We are under severe sanctions and pressure by the global arrogance, and we have to break these sanctions and improve people’s lives,” he added, referring to the United States.
"Sanctions are a terrorist and tyrannical act against Iran,” he said, adding "one cannot say sanctions have no effect and the government should be doing more... It’s lies, it’s supporting America.”
The Guardian Council said it expected at least 50 percent of registered voters to cast ballots in the election.
"Our forecast is that we will have a good turnout in the upcoming election, and the average turnout has usually not been under 50 percent, and we will witness a turnout of 50 percent turnout in this election too,” Kadkhodaee said.
The Iranian economy is under strain since Trump abandoned the nuclear deal in 2018 and reimposed sanctions as part of a "maximum pressure” campaign.
Tensions between Iran and the United States have come to a head twice in the past seven months, most recently after the U.S. assassinated prominent Iranian general Qassem Soleimani on January 3.
The martyrdom of the hugely popular general provoked an outpouring of grief in Iran. Millions from all walks of life turned out to mourn his martyrdom in a show of unity which stunned the world.