Iran Presidential Election Registration Gets Underway

Registering the candidates started at 8:00 AM today at the order of Interior Minister Ahmad Vahidi.

Eligible applicants can submit the required documents within a deadline of five days.

The names of the hopefuls will then be handed over to the Constitutional Council, the 12-member body that oversees elections and legislation.

It will vet and pronounce a final ruling on the competency of the hopefuls according to constitutional requirements.

Iranians will elect a new president in a nationwide election on June 28 after the passing away of President Ebrahim Raisi in a helicopter crash.

A helicopter carrying President Raisi and his entourage crashed in northwestern mountainous forests on May 19.

The tragic accident killed the president and seven others, including Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian.

According to the Constitution, First Vice President Mohammad Mokhber took the helm as the head of the Executive Branch at the discretion of Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyed Ali Khamenei.

Afterwards, a council consisting of the Parliament speaker, the Judiciary chief, and the first vice president was formed to make arrangements for the election of a new president within 50 days, in accordance with the Constitution.

The council held a meeting, also attended by the presidential deputy for legal affairs, the vice chairman of the Constitutional Council, and the interior minister’s deputy for political affairs.

It decided that the presidential election should be held on Friday, June 28, after the initial approval of the Constitutional Council. It also set a timetable for the formation of electoral executive delegations, the registration of applicants, and the election campaign processes.

The applicants can sign up for candidacy from May 30 to June 3, while the election campaign period is set for June 12-27.