Arrangements Made for Iranian Expats’ Participation in Presidential Polls
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – More than 300 ballot boxes will be available at the diplomatic missions of Iran in foreign countries on the presidential election day, an official said.
As Iran is going to hold presidential election on June 28, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has made arrangements for the participation of Iranian expatriates in the polls, the director general of the ministry’s consular affairs said at a press conference in Tehran on Sunday.
Alireza Mahmoudi noted that a total of 344 ballot boxes will be sent abroad to allow Iranian citizens to vote in foreign countries.
The highest number of ballot boxes will be available in the United States, as Iranian expats across the US will have access to over 30 ballot boxes on election day, including in the Interests Section of Iran in Washington, D.C., and in New York City, he added.
Mahmoudi noted that Iranian voters will be able to attend elections in neighboring Iraq, where 23 ballot boxes will be available in six polling stations.
The Iranian pilgrims visiting Iraq’s holy cities will also have access to mobile ballot boxes, he said.
While more than 10 ballot boxes will be allocated to England, the Iranian nationals residing in Germany’s Munich, Frankfurt, Hamburg and Bonn can also cast their ballots, the official added.
He also noted that the Foreign Ministry has been in correspondence with the office that serves as Canada’s interests section in Iran to pave the way for the participation of Iranian expatriates in Canada in the upcoming election.
Iran insists that Canada must recognize the Iranians’ inalienable right, he stated, adding that Tehran is waiting for Canada’s response.
The election campaign period in Iran began on June 9 and will run until June 26, while the nationwide presidential election will be held on Friday, June 28.
The new administration, the 14th one after the victory of the Islamic Revolution in 1979, will assume power in late June or early July and hold office for four years.
A helicopter carrying Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi and his entourage crashed in northwestern mountainous forests on May 19, killing the president, Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian, and six others.
According to the Constitution, First Vice President Mohammad Mokhber has taken the helm as the acting president at the discretion of Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyed Ali Khamenei until the election of a new president.