Some 60,000 Polling Places Prepared for Iran Elections

Speaking at a press conference on Wednesday, the spokesman said the upcoming elections on Friday will be held in around 60,000 polling stations across Iran.

Tahan Nazif said about 75 percent of the applicants for the parliamentary seats have passed the screening process and have been allowed to run in the elections.

He noted that an average of 52 candidates would run for each parliamentary seat on Friday, adding that the religious minorities have fixed quotas in the Parliament.

The candidates that have passed the screening process are of different social strata, including lawyers, physicians, judges, and teachers, he said.

The number of female candidates is six times the number the of parliamentary seats, Nazif stated.

A total of 144 clergymen have also been chosen as the final candidates for the Assembly of Experts elections, he added.

According to the spokesman, 230,000 popular observers, whom the Constitutional Council does not employ, will assist with the process of monitoring the polls.

Around 800,000 executive elements working under the supervision of the Interior Ministry will be involved in Friday’s elections and a total of 62,000 representatives of the candidates will be observing the process of voting at the polling stations, he noted.

The spokesman also stated that 250,000 forces have been tasked with ensuring the security of elections on the voting day.

There are currently 290 seats in the Iranian Parliament, known as Majlis, elected by direct vote of people in nationwide elections for four years.

The Assembly of Experts is a high-ranking body that elects and oversees the activities of the Leader of the Islamic Revolution.

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.