Iran’s President Urges High Turnout in February Elections
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Iranian President Hassan Rouhani on Sunday called on the Iranian nation to make the best choices through their high turnout in the upcoming parliamentary and Assembly of Experts elections due to be held in late February.
People’s participation in the elections is “effective”, the Iranian president noted, speaking on the sidelines of paying homage to the late founder of the Islamic Republic Imam Khomeini here in Tehran.
“Under no circumstances should we turn our back to the ballot boxes,” Rouhani said, stressing that if it was not for the high turnout in 2013 presidential elections, the country could not celebrate the nuclear deal and termination of anti-Iran sanctions.
Therefore, he added, “people should go to the ballot boxes under any circumstances and choose the best ones for the Islamic Consultative Assembly (Iranian parliament) and the Assembly of Experts.”
In similar remarks earlier this month, Leader of the Islamic Revolution called on Iranians from all walks of life with every political orientation to take part in the February elections, describing people’s involvement in the voting process as a major factor in survival of the Islamic Revolution.
It is necessary for the whole eligible voters to cast their ballots in the February 26 elections for choosing members of the Assembly of Experts and the Parliament, Ayatollah Seyed Ali Khamenei said on January 9.
“We insist, like the past, that everybody should go to the ballot box, even those who disapprove of the Establishment and the leadership, because the election belongs to the nation, to Iran and to the Islamic Republic Establishment,” Imam Khamenei stressed.
The Leader explained that elections contribute to the survival of the Revolution, because people’s action to feel responsibility and vote will stymie the enemy’s plots.
The maximum turnout in the elections will strengthen the Islamic Establishment, guarantee constant provision of security, add to the Iranian nation’s credibility in the world, and boost the grandeur of the Islamic Republic in the eyes of enemies, Ayatollah Khamenei pointed out at the time.
The Assembly of Experts and the parliamentary elections are slated to be held simultaneously on February 26.
There will be 290 seats in the Iranian parliament and 88 in the Assembly of Experts up for grabs.
Members of the assembly are directly elected to office by people for an eight-year term. It holds biannual meetings to appoint a new chairman.