Masoud Pezeshkian, a reformist candidate and heart surgeon, emerged victorious in Iran’s runoff presidential election on Saturday. He secured the win by pledging to engage with the West and relax the enforcement of the country’s compulsory headscarf law, following a period of sanctions and protests that have strained the Islamic Republic. Pezeshkian’s opponent, hard-liner Saeed Jalili, was defeated in the electoral contest.
Throughout his campaign, Pezeshkian refrained from promising any drastic changes to Iran’s Shiite theocracy. He has consistently recognized Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei as the ultimate authority in all matters concerning the state.
However, Pezeshkian’s modest objectives are likely to face challenges from an Iranian government that remains largely controlled by hard-liners, the ongoing Israel-Hamas conflict in the Gaza Strip, and Western concerns about Tehran’s enrichment of uranium to near-weapons-grade levels.
According to the vote count provided by the authorities, Pezeshkian secured 16.3 million votes, while Jalili received 13.5 million votes in Friday’s election.
Throughout his campaign, Pezeshkian refrained from promising any drastic changes to Iran’s Shiite theocracy. He has consistently recognized Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei as the ultimate authority in all matters concerning the state.
However, Pezeshkian’s modest objectives are likely to face challenges from an Iranian government that remains largely controlled by hard-liners, the ongoing Israel-Hamas conflict in the Gaza Strip, and Western concerns about Tehran’s enrichment of uranium to near-weapons-grade levels.
According to the vote count provided by the authorities, Pezeshkian secured 16.3 million votes, while Jalili received 13.5 million votes in Friday’s election.