Iran elections test president´s popularity

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Source: CCTV.com | 12-14-2006 09:34

Iranian President Mahoud Ahmadinejad faces the first test of his popularity since coming to power 16 months ago. On Friday nation-wide elections will be held for local councils and a powerful clerical assembly.

Iran's 46.5 million eligible voters will have the chance to choose between around 233,000 candidates for more than 113,000 city and rural council posts.

Simultaneous elections will also be held for the 86-member Assembly of Experts, an elite group of Shi'ite Muslim clerics who have the power to elect, dismiss and supervise Iran's most powerful figure, the supreme leader.

Most reformists have been barred by a conservative panel that vets hopefuls.

In the Tehran council race, conservatives are split over who should be mayor of the city of 12 million people.

Allies of Ahmadinejad, himself Tehran mayor for two years before becoming president, are determined to oust current mayor Mahammad Baqer Qalibaf, a former national police chief and a losing candidate in the 2005 presidential elections.

One political analyst, who did not want to be named, said Ahmadinejad sees Qalibaf as a potential rival in future and he also thinks he is too close to reformist-thinking.

The analyst predicted that the president hopes the vote will consolidate his grip on power. Reformists are betting high voter turnout and disenchantment with rising prices for basic goods will spark a reversal in their fortunes.

A key barometer will be whether reformists can regain seats on Tehran's city council. Analysts say a divided council is the most likely result.

Editor:Du Xiaodan