Tehran, Iran, May 19
By Mehdi Sepahvand – Trend:
Iranians started to go to polling stations to elect their next president at 8:00 local time, Trend correspondent reported May 19.
This round of election includes incumbent president Hassan Rouhani fighting for a second term, rivaled by conservative Ebrahim Raisi, with a career in the judiciary and currently the superintendent of Iran’s biggest religious tourism foundation in Mashhad.
Elections of city councils and a mid-term parliamentary election are also being held simultaneously.
Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and President Rouhani cast their vote in the early minutes after polling started.
He said democracy is a “blessing” and called on Iranians to rush to the polling booths and cast their votes.