IRAN: Iranians voted on Friday for local councils and a powerful clerical body in the first electoral test for President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad

Iranians voted on Friday (December 15) for local councils and a powerful clerical body in the first electoral test for President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and his allies since he swept to office in 2005. The vote for city and rural councils and the Assembly of Experts, in theory the most powerful institution in the Islamic Republic, will show if the president's rivals are regaining popularity even if the results have no direct impact on policy. Forecasting results is hampered by a lack of reliable opinion polls but some early voters for Tehran City Council, the most high profile of Friday's races, stood behind the president. Ahmadinejad, the son of a blacksmith who says the government must be more in touch with people, waited in line for about half an hour to vote at a mosque in east Tehran. Ahmadinejad's anti-Western and anti-Israel statements have alarmed the West. "We hope that our enemies change their behaviour and stop the hostilities relating towards Iran's nation because the Iranian nation will move towards its goals powerfully," President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said. Any indication his popularity is waning is likely to be taken as a welcome sign among Western countries worried Iran is building nuclear arms. Iran denies this. But Ahmadinejad's vow to share out Iran's oil wealth more fairly still wins him the backing of many of the Islamic Republic's poor, even if many also grumble about rising prices, which economists blame on the president's spending policies. Iranians will also choose the 86-member Assembly of Experts, which appointed, supervises and can unseat Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, 67, the country's highest authority. Although it holds powers even parliament or the president cannot boast, the assembly is dominated by traditional conservative clerics who have kept a low profile and are never known to have challenged Khamenei's actions. Khamenei urged Iranians to do their "revolutionary and national duty" and vote after he cast his own ballot. "My motivation to participate in this election is exactly the same as our people. That is doing a religious and national and revolutionary duty. We have all felt that our participation in the elections means our intervention in the destiny. And the management of the country in different levels. This is a public motivation. Fortunately, our nation has felt it and will participate in the elections," Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said. In the Tehran race, the conservative camp is split between Ahmadinejad's backers, called "The Pleasant Scent of Servitude", and supporters of Tehran mayor, Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf. Iran's reform movement, defeated in 2003 council polls and subsequent parliamentary and presidential races, is seeking a comeback but it does not expect to make sweeping gains. Polling stations are due to close at 7.00 p.m. (1530 GMT), although in past elections voting has often been extended. Results may not be released until late on Sunday.

ITN Source | December 16, 2006

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