Following the tragic death of President Ebrahim Raisi in a plane crash on May 19, the results of the first round of early presidential elections in Iran have been announced. Masoud Pezeshkian, a former Minister of Health and reformer, received the highest number of votes with approximately 42% of the voters supporting him. Said Jalili, a conservative politician, came in second place with around 39% of the votes cast in his favor.
Despite neither candidate receiving more than 50% of the votes, a second round of elections is scheduled to take place on July 5. The voter turnout for these elections was just 40%, making it the lowest in Iranian history. In the upcoming second round, Jalili holds an advantage as supporters from three conservative politicians who ran in the first round will not have another candidate to vote for. However, Pezeshkian’s strong performance in the initial round may inspire more voters to support him in the runoff election.
It is important to note that while the president of Iran is considered the formal head of state, Ali Khamenei serves as Supreme Leader and effectively governs