Iran holds presidential election runoff

Polling stations opened in the second round of Iran’s presidential election at 8:00 a.m. local time, News.Az reports.

Two candidates -- Masoud Pezeshkian, a reformist lawmaker and former health minister, and Saeed Jalili, a conservative former lead nuclear negotiator and secretary of the Supreme National Security Council -- are vying for the presidency.

Pezeshkian and Jalili emerged as the frontrunners in the June 28 snap presidential election but fell short of securing the 50% plus one vote required for an outright win.

Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was the first to cast his ballot. He addressed the country’s people, urging them to more actively participate in the presidential runoff.

Iran's presidential election was originally scheduled for 2025 but was brought forward by the death of ultraconservative president Raisi in a May helicopter crash.

In the June 28 snap presidential election, voting was extended thrice and ended at midnight, but voter turnout was still the lowest since the 1979 Iranian Revolution, at 40%.

Counting of ballots will start immediately after the voting lines close, and the Interior Ministry will announce the results in phases until the final results are announced Saturday morning.

News.Az