Voters come out in force as Iran holds key elections
Iranians line up outside polling stations to cast their ballots in the country’s key parliamentary and Assembly of Experts elections.
TEHRAN — Outside the iconic, blue-tiled Hosseinieh Ershad building, at 7:45 a.m. on Feb. 26, voters in the Iranian capital were lined up and waiting for the moment the blue gate would open.
The line was not huge, but for an early morning vote in a city like Tehran, on a Friday, long lines were expected. As the gate was unlocked at 8:00 a.m., everyone shouted, "Allahu ma salli Ala Mohammad va Al Mohammad" — the typical phrase Iranians use to welcome anything. "Praise upon [Prophet] Mohammad and his progeny."
People entered the huge hall, which is adorned from floor to ceiling with exquisite Islamic calligraphy. It seems the venue itself breathes the history of the Iranian struggle for freedom.
"I'm here to preserve the blood of my fellow Iranians who died in the Sacred Defense," said a man whose face was covered with pictures of young men killed in the 1980-88 Iraq-Iran War. "We need to get out of depression and stress. Stress is the cancer we are suffering from; we want economic reforms that can bring smiles to families once again."
