Watch FIFA World Cup 2026™

LIVE, FREE and EXCLUSIVE

Iran moderates eye more gains in election

Voting has begun in Iran for a second round of parliamentary elections, with moderates scoring big gains in the first round in February.

Iranians have lined up outside polling stations to vote in a second round of parliamentary elections, with allies of President Hassan Rouhani seeking to wrest more seats from hardliners.

Rouhani's moderate and centrist allies made major gains in February 26 elections to parliament and a clerical body that will elect the next Supreme Leader, but failed to win a majority of the 290-member assembly.

The current parliament is dominated by hardline allies of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

"People will vote for 68 undecided seats in constituencies that candidates failed to get 25 per cent of votes cast in the first round of the election," said Interior Minister Abdolreza Rahmani Fazli, state TV reported.

In a major blow to their hardline rivals, moderates won all 30 seats representing the capital city of Tehran in the first round of elections. Rahmani Fazli said the results will be announced by Sunday.

News that makes sense

Your trusted source for staying up-to-date with the world around you. Get free daily news updates and analysis, straight to your inbox.

By subscribing, you agree to SBS’s terms of service and privacy policy including receiving email updates from SBS.

In a statement posted on social media on Sunday, reformist former President Mohammad Khatami called for a high turnout in the second round of elections to "repeat the epic", a reference to moderates' big gains in February.

Iranian media are banned from publishing the name or images of Khatami, who was president from 1997 to 2005, but Khatami managed to publish a five-minute video on social media ahead of February vote that changed the balance in favour of moderates.

Khamenei also has called for a high turnout, saying it will display Iranians' trust in the establishment.

The turnout was 62 per cent in February.

Sanctions were lifted in January in exchange for curbing Iran's nuclear program under a deal reached with major powers in 2015.


2 min read

Published

Source: AAP



Share this with family and friends


Get SBS News straight to your inbox

Sign up now for daily news from Australia and around the world. You can also subscribe to Insight's weekly newsletter for in-depth features and first-person stories.

By subscribing, you agree to SBS’s terms of service and privacy policy including receiving email updates from SBS.

Follow SBS News

Download our apps

Listen to our podcasts

Get the latest with our News podcasts on your favourite podcast apps.

Watch on SBS

SBS World News

Take a global view with Australia's most comprehensive world news service

Stream now

Watch the latest news videos from Australia and across the world