Who are the men running to become Iran's next president?

NEWS WIRES

28 June 2024 at 4:51 am·1-min read

Iranians voting today in the Islamic Republic's snap presidential election will have to choose between a restricted list of largely hardline candidates. Meet four of the men hoping to take the place of late president Ebrahim Raisi.

Iranians will choose between mostly hardline candidates in an early presidential election on Friday following the death of Ebrahim Raisi in a helicopter crash.

Only six candidates from over 80 hopefuls survived screening by the hardline Guardian Council, a panel of clerics and jurists which is overseen by the Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who has the final say in all matters of state. Two hardline candidates dropped out of the race ahead of the election.

The president, who runs the government day-to-day and has a particular responsibility for Iran's struggling economy, ultimately answers to the Supreme Leader.

Following are brief sketches of three hardliners and one moderate candidate for the upcoming election:

Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf

A former Iran Revolutionary Guards commander and ally of Khamenei, Qalibaf is the current speaker of the hardline-dominated parliament. He previously ran unsuccessfully for president twice and was compelled to withdraw from a third bid in 2017 to prevent a divided hardline vote in Raisi's initial failed presidential attempt.

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Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf

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