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Prominent Iranian politicians commented on the presidential race just hours before the scheduled elections in Iran tomorrow, Friday. Two former presidents have endorsed the “moderate” candidate, while many opposition figures have called on citizens to boycott the elections, according to “Iran International”.

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Removing Hardliners

The network reported that Mohammad Khatami and Hassan Rouhani, each of whom led the Iranian government for two four-year terms between 1997 and 2021, have come out to support Massoud Pezeshkian, who served as Minister of Health under Khatami’s government.

The two former Iranian presidents encouraged citizens to go to the polling stations on Friday and use their votes to keep hardliners out of the executive power. Their message starkly contrasts with that of prominent opposition figures who have asked people to stay away from the polls and not recognize the “show elections”.

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Renowned activist and former prisoner Hossein Ronaghi said: “The most peaceful way to show your opposition to this blatant repression and to send a ‘no to the Islamic Republic’ message is to boycott the upcoming farce of an election.”

Joining Ronaghi’s call from prison was Faezeh Hashemi, former deputy and daughter of another former president, Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani. Before her, other voices from within Iranian prisons had called for an election boycott, most notably Nobel Peace Prize laureate Narges Mohammadi, who described the elections as “fabricated”.

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Election Boycott

The network confirmed that the upcoming presidential elections in Iran feature five well-informed politicians who were carefully selected after one hardliner, Amir Hossein Ghazizadeh Hashemi, withdrew from the race to support three other hardliners. The hardliner camp is concerned about splitting their votes, allowing the sole “moderate” candidate, Pezeshkian, to advance in the vote.

Current polls show that at least half of eligible voters may avoid the elections on Friday. This will be the first presidential election in Iran after the widespread uprising in 2022, in which at least 500 people were killed, and many of those who took to the streets across Iran and bore the brunt of state brutality have once again turned against the regime by calling for an election boycott.

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In a joint statement on Wednesday, several mothers of protesters and opposition figures killed described the upcoming elections as a “circus” that Iranians should ignore, focusing instead on other ways to pressure the regime for change.

They said: “We will not stop seeking justice until we get our right to prosecute and punish the criminals who executed and shot our innocent children.”

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Many student organizations and women’s rights groups have also encouraged Iranians not to vote on Friday. Over the weekend, more than 500 teachers, union activists, and prominent cultural figures in Iran issued a joint statement publicly announcing their decision to abstain from participating in the upcoming presidential elections.