Wednesday marks the last
day of campaigning for Iran's parliamentary and Assembly of Experts
elections, with candidates trying to reach as many supporters as
possible, whether in person through posters or social media.
In the capital Tehran, candidates rallied supporters while
trying appeal to undecided young voters who could sway the outcome of
the polls. About 60 percent of the population in Iran are 30 years old
or younger.
In universities across the city, parliament candidates
like Ali Motahari and Mohammad Reza Aref - who are known reformists -
are attracting huge crowds.
As candidates were busy crisscrossing the city, campaign
workers handed leaflets outside subway stations or plastered posters
bearing photos and party logos of different sizes and colours.
Some posters include links to their address on Telegram, a
popular messaging app in the country. Other candidates for the Assembly
of Experts hang oversized banners on lamp posts on Tehran's busiest
streets.
The parliament has 290 seats. Its role is to pass
legislation, including approving the budget and international treaties.
The Assembly of Experts is a body of 88 religion experts, tasked with
picking the country's Supreme Leader when a vacancy arises.
Official campaigning only started last Thursday.
Candidates only have seven full days to make their case. That means
those who have name recognition and big party backing have an advantage.
Across the country there are 6229 candidates running for
seats in parliament, while about 161, mostly elderly clerics, are vying
for 88 Assembly of Experts seats nationwide.
There are 6,229 approved candidates running for the 290-seat parliament in Iran. [Mohammad ali Najib/Al Jazeera]
In the capital Tehran, an estimated 1,000 candidates
are vying for 30 parliament seats assigned to the city. [Mohammad ali
Najib/Al Jazeera]
Members of the reformist candidates Ali Motahari and
Mohammad Reza Aref gather at a campaign event in one of the universities
in Tehran. [Mohammad ali Najib/Al Jazeera]
Only 586 of the candidates are women or 9.4 percent of
the entire number of candidates, but 49 percent of the entire population
are women. [Mohammad ali Najib/Al Jazeera]
The Assembly of Experts have a fix term of eight years
and they are responsible for picking the next Supreme Leader. [Mohammad
ali Najib/Al Jazeera]
Over 70 percent of the 81.8 million Iranians live in urban areas. [Mohammad ali Najib/Al Jazeera]
In the 2013 presidential election, 72.77 percent of the voters cast their ballot. [Mohammad ali Najib/Al Jazeera]
There are an estimated 50 million voters, and they have
to be 18 years old or older to be able to cast their ballot. [Mohammad
ali Najib/Al Jazeera]
There are 250 registered political parties in the
upcoming elections, but allegiances have been known to change once the
parliament and Assembly of Experts members are seated. [Mohammad ali
Najib/Al Jazeera]
The economy is among the top issues in the campaign
with a youth unemployment of 25 percent and inflation of 15.3 percent in
2015. [Mohammad ali Najib/Al Jazeera]
No comments:
Post a Comment