Clerics Lost Hope for Presidential Election Win, Says Pundit

Abbas Abdi, a prominent 'reformist' commentator, suggested that clerics withdrew from running for the upcoming snap election as they believe their chances are slim.

“Even though the approval of those qualified has not yet been announced, it appears to be the first time since 1981 that clerics have entirely withdrawn from this area,” Abdi wrote on X on Tuesday.

The political analyst surmised that the reason might be that the clerics “are not hopeful of being voted president” but nevertheless “hold crucial positions” in the state and five of eight former presidents of Iran were clerics.

A total of 80 candidates have allegedly registered for the presidential elections following President Ebrahim Raisi's unexpected death in a helicopter crash last month. While among them are a few clerics, namely Mostafa Pourmohammadi, former interior minister and justice minister in two different administrations, Ahmad Akbari, former MP, and Mohammad Reza Mirtajodini, former vice president to Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, none are seen as the main competitors for the presidential role.

According to KhabarOnline, more than 70% of the registered candidates are current or former lawmakers.

After a week, the Guardian Council will announce the approved candidates, with the election scheduled for June 28. Candidates who have been approved will have the opportunity to campaign in the two weeks before the election. If no candidate receives more than 50% of the votes, a run-off election will be held on July 5.

Some of the most notable conservative candidates are hardline politician Saeid Jalili, conservative Parliament Speaker Mohammad-Bagher Ghalibaf, and the more "moderate" conservative Ali Larijani.

On the reformist and moderate side, Es’haq Jahangiri, former Vice President in Hassan Rouhani's administration, and Abdolnasser Hemmati, a former Central Bank of Iran governor, are among the leading contenders.