Rift among conservatives exposed in Iran elections

Iran’s parliamentary elections Friday turned into an internal battle between political hard-liners who support the populism of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and those who blame him for policies that have led to high inflation, unemployment and fuel shortages.

The vote was also expected to further marginalize reformists, hundreds of whom were barred from the ballot for their political views by clerics and jurists in the Guardian Council. Reformists were hoping not to slip below the 50 seats they now control in the 290-member parliament. Their standing was weakened by the lack of a galvanizing voice such as that of former President Mohammad Khatami.

Official results aren’t expected until today, but analysts and government officials predicted a victory for the conservatives, although they were unsure as to which faction would prevail. Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei had urged Iranians to vote, and officials monitored balloting, fearing a low turnout would embarrass the country internationally and underscore a rising dissatisfaction over the government’s handling of the economy.

Polls remained open an extra four hours. Recent surveys suggested 60% of 43 million eligible Iranians would vote.

“The secret of survival for the nation is this oceanic presence [of voters] on the political scene,” Ahmadinejad said after casting his ballot. “This presence is a humiliation to our enemies,” he added, referring to the U.S. and the West.

The campaign leading to the election revealed a split among political conservatives over the Iranian president. Ahmadinejad’s supporters, including some ruling Shiite Muslim clerics, praise his defiance of the West and his tremendous appeal in the provinces. But others, such as former chief nuclear negotiator Ali Larijani, fault the president for what they regard as his overheated rhetoric toward the international community and for the country’s continuing financial problems despite the surge in oil prices.

Larijani resigned his nuclear post in October after complaining that Ahmadinejad’s statements often undercut his talks with Western officials on Iran’s nuclear program. Larijani’s campaign against Ahmadinejad, however, is mainly concentrated on domestic financial issues; hard-liners are unified on most policies, including relations with Washington.

“The criticism of Ahmadinejad among the hard-liners started months ago, and this election is a portrait of that,” said Nader Karimijori, a political analyst and editor at a conservative newspaper. “They accuse him of economically mismanaging the country. What’s happening now is that the divide among the hard-liners will be more visible.”

Many reformists appeared dispirited, expecting a consolidation of power by hard-liners, although some predicted that reformists might win as many as 80 seats. The hundreds of reformists removed from balloting lists were accused of, among other things, not upholding the ideals of the 1979 Islamic Revolution.

“There might be an iota of change,” Mullah Fazel Mibodi, a reformist supporter, said by telephone from Qom. “But the motivation for me to go out and vote was zero.”

In Tehran, voting was slow at first but picked up after Friday prayers as voters -- many perplexed at having to choose 30 candidates out of hundreds -- arrived at polling stations with scribbled lists. Some polling places were nearly empty; others had long lines. Voters in the richer neighborhoods of the north turned out for reformists and those in the poorer south tended toward Ahmadinejad, analysts said.

“I voted for the conservatives, but so far I’m 50-50 in my support of Ahmadinejad,” said Abbas Naderi after voting in one of the many green voting buses that wound through the city. “So far he’s not been that successful. The government should be like a father, taking responsibility for its failures.”

A few minutes later, Ghasem Panjehhyderi, a retired railroad worker, stepped off a bus with his list of candidates. He seemed confused. He had voted for Ahmadinejad’s supporters, but also for Khatami, the former reformist president, who wasn’t on the ballot; Panjehhyderi said he saw Khatami’s face on a poster and thought he was in the race.

“Ahmadinejad is the most successful president in the post-revolution era,” he said. “He’s brave against the Americans and international arrogance. He’s cleaned up corruption. He’s transparent, simple. . . . I’m not dissatisfied with the economy. Inflation is everywhere. It’s a global problem.”

A student with spiky hair and rumpled clothes, who gave his name only as Ahmad, had other plans on election day.

“What’s the point in voting?” he said. “The government has disqualified so many reformist candidates for their views. Nothing will change. It’s better to spend the day hiking.”

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jeffrey.fleishman@latimes.com

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Special correspondent Ramin Mostaghim contributed to this report.