( AP ) - Hard-line allies of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad pulled ahead in Iran's parliamentary elections, according to partial results Saturday, but the president's conservative critics were making a strong showing that could unsettle his domination of the legislature.
Reformists, meanwhile, struggled to create an effective minority bloc after large numbers of their candidates - many of which support better relations with the West - were barred from the race. The United States said the results were "cooked" because of the disqualifications.
Many reform supporters spent election day Friday deliberating whether to vote and give legitimacy to a contest many of them saw as unfair, or boycott and ensure an even stronger conservative domination of parliament.
In the end, Hesam Javadi, a 30-year-old computer technician, voted.
"We can't stop the rain," he said after casting his ballot for reformists at a north Tehran polling station. "But we can at least put an umbrella over our heads in self-defense."