Hardline cleric Ebrahim Raisi declared Iran’s new president

Tehran [Iran], June 19 (ANI): Iran‘s ultraconservative cleric and judiciary chief Ebrahim Raisi has been elected Iran‘s eighth president, the country’s interior ministry has announced on Saturday.
Former Revolutionary Guard commander Mohsen Rezaei, moderate candidate Abdolnaser Hemmati and conservative candidate Amir Hossein Ghazizadeh Hashemi had conceded ahead of the announcement on Saturday, reported Al Jazeera.
The ministry confirmed on Saturday that Raisi won 61.95 percent of the vote on a voter turnout of 48.8 percent – the lowest turnout for a presidential election since the 1979 revolution. Raisi got 28,933,004 votes, while former Revolutionary Guard commander Mohsen Rezaei finished third with 3,412,712 votes and was followed by moderate candidate Abdolnasswer Hemmati with 2,427,201 votes, and conservative Amir Hossein Ghazizadeh Hashemi with 999,718 votes.
Raisi will take office in early August, replacing moderate President Hassan Rouhani who was not allowed by the constitution to run for a third consecutive term.
“I congratulate the people on their choice,” said Rouhani after the announcement.

Raisi has become the first Iranian president to be sanctioned by the United States even before assuming office as he was designated in 2019.
The US blacklisted him for his role in the mass execution of political prisoners in 1988, his involvement in the crackdown on the 2009 Green Movement protests, and “administration of oversight over the executions of individuals who were juveniles at the time of their crime”, reported Al Jazeera.
It further reported that Raisi grew up in the northeastern city of Mashhad, an important religious centre for Shia Muslims where Imam Reza, the eighth Shia religious leader, is buried.
He attended the seminary in Qom and studied under some of Iran‘s most prominent Muslim scholars, including Supreme Leader Ali Hosseini Khamenei.
After becoming the prosecutor for several jurisdictions, Raisi moved to the capital, Tehran, in 1985 after being appointed deputy prosecutor.
After moving up the ranks in the judicial system, in March 2016, he was appointed by the supreme leader as the custodian of the Astan-e Quds Razavi, the influential shrine of Imam Reza, where he controlled billions of dollars in assets.
He had run for president unsuccessfully against Rouhani in 2017, garnering 38 percent of the vote.

Foreign leaders congratulate Iran’s President-Elect Raisi

Foreign leaders have extended their congratulations to Iranian top judge Ebrahim Raisi on winning the presidential race.

“I sincerely congratulate you on your election as the President of Iran. I hope that the election results will bring good to the friendly and fraternal Iranian people,” Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said in a message, as quoted by his office.

The Turkish leader also expressed readiness to come to Tehran for talks with his future counterpart once the pandemic allows.
“After the pandemic is overcome, I will be happy to visit Tehran as part of the next meeting of the Turkey-Iran High-Level Cooperation Council. I wish you success in your new post and hope for the development of Turkish-Iranian relations in all areas,” the message read.
Among others who have already congratulated Raisi on his victory are UAE Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum and Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, as well as Syrian President Bashar Assad and Lebanese Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah.
Russian President Vladimir Putin earlier also expressed hope for further development of bilateral ties in his letter to the Iranian president-elect.

US state department questions fairness of Iranian elections after Raisi’s victory

The US State Department claims that the presidential election in Iran was not a fair one, but the US will continue to advance its interests in Iran regardless of who is in power, a department spokesperson told Sputnik.
The Iranian Interior Ministry announced on Saturday that Ebrahim Raisi won the election with nearly 62 percent. The turnout was 48.8 percent – the lowest in Iran‘s history.
“We’ve seen that the Iranian Interior Minister announced Ebrahim Raisi as the winner of the Iranian elections that occurred on Friday, but also make note that Iranians were denied their right to choose their own leaders in a free and fair electoral process,” a US State Department spokesperson told Sputnik on Saturday.

Meanwhile, a number of world leaders, including Qatari Emir Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, and Syrian President Bashar Assad, have already congratulated Raisi on his victory.
The State Department spokesperson told Sputnik that the US will continue discussions with its allies and partners on a return to compliance with the Iran nuclear deal.
“Our Iran policy is designed to advance U.S. interests, regardless of who is in power. We would like to build on the meaningful progress achieved during the latest round of talks in Vienna,” the spokesperson said.
The European Union External Action Service said on Saturday that the Joint Commission of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) was going to resume the negotiations in Vienna on June 20. Representatives of China, France, Germany, Russia, the United Kingdom and Iran will attend the talks.
The participants will continue to discuss a possible return of the United States to the nuclear deal and ways to ensure its full and effective implementation.