Iran's Ahmadinejad, Haghanian grab spotlight in tight presidential race
All eyes are now on the hard-line Guardian Council, which is expected to remove the vast majority of the 80 hopefuls, leaving a limited number to compete in a controlled election process.
TEHRAN — Iran's election supervisory body, known as the Guardian Council, started deliberations on Tuesday to finalize a list of candidates, deemed fit by the ruling establishment, who will enter the race for the upcoming snap presidential election.
Under the Iranian Constitution, the council has five working days, extendable by five more, to complete the vetting process, with the results, according to its spokesman, expected on June 11.
The registration process was wrapped up on Monday after 80 hopefuls attended the election headquarters in Tehran to officially declare their nomination.
Slated for June 28, the snap polls were triggered by the sudden death of President Ebrahim Raisi in a helicopter crash earlier in May. Seven others died in the incident, including Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian.
