Moderate candidate Masoud Pezeshkian has secured 53.7 percent of the vote in Iran’s presidential elections, becoming the country’s ninth president, the Interior Ministry announced on Saturday.
Pezeshkian, a former Health Minister and Member of Parliament for Tabriz, won the second round of the election, defeating hardline former nuclear negotiator Saeed Jalili, who received 44.4 percent of the vote.
The election saw a turnout of around 50 percent, with 30,530,157 votes cast at approximately 59,000 polling stations across the country.
The results mark a significant victory for the moderate faction in Iran, potentially setting a new political direction for the country. Videos on social media showed supporters of Pezeshkian celebrating in the streets of many cities and towns across the country.
While Pezeshkian’s election is not expected to bring about major policy changes, it may influence the selection of a successor to Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Iran’s 85-year-old Supreme Leader, who retains ultimate authority over key state matters.
The election was marked by calls for a boycott from Iranian rights activists, who argued that participation would legitimise the Islamic Republic. Many Kurds and other ethnic minorities, feeling marginalised, likely abstained from voting. The hashtag #ElectionCircus has been widely used on social media, reflecting widespread scepticism about the electoral process.
Despite Pezeshkian’s promises of greater social freedoms and international openness, many voters remain sceptical of his ability to bring about significant change, given his stated unwillingness to confront Iran’s powerful clerical and security establishments.
The election coincides with escalating regional tensions due to the Israeli war on Gaza, as well as increased Western pressure on Iran over its advancing uranium enrichment programme. Both Pezeshkian and Jalili had pledged to address the country’s struggling economy, which has been severely affected by international sanctions.
