10 Picked to Vie for Iranian Presidency
Iran’s electoral watchdog on Wednesday announced the final list of 10 candidates for next month’s presidential election, including incumbent Mohammad Khatami but ruling out two dozen women who had applied.
The hard-line Guardian Council culled the names from 814 would-be candidates. Except for Khatami, seen as a moderate, all the contenders have links to conservative or hard-line factions.
Former Cabinet ministers, a former lawmaker and a university professor were among those who made the final cut, the official Islamic Republic News Agency said.
The council gave no reason for disqualifying women from the June 8 ballot. After a similar disqualification in 1997, the council said the constitution made no provision for women to run for president.
No challenger is expected to unseat Khatami, a cleric whose program of social and political reform has been popular with the electorate.
Khatami’s most prominent challengers are Defense Minister Ali Shamkhani and former Intelligence Minister Ali Fallahian.
Start your day right
Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
