Iranians were voting Friday in a runoff election to replace the late President Ebrahim Raisi, who was killed in a May helicopter crash in the country's northwest along with the foreign minister and several other officials.
Voters will choose between hard-line former nuclear negotiator Saeed Jalili and reformist candidate Masoud Pezeshkian, who has aligned himself with those seeking a return to the 2015 nuclear deal with world powers.
Domestic issues that have loomed over the race include a on mandatory headscarfs for women and a , as well as years of marked by widespread unemployment and high inflation.
After , it remains unclear how many Iranians will take part in Friday鈥檚 poll. Iranian law requires that a runoff if no one candidate gets more than 50% of all votes cast in the first round.
While 85-year-old Supreme Leader has final say on all matters of state, presidents can bend Iran toward confrontation or negotiations with the West.
Here is the latest:
Polls close in Iran's presidential runoff
Polls have closed in runoff presidential elections shortly after midnight on Friday across Iran, following two extensions of voting hours.
The country鈥檚 state TV said those who were still waiting in line at the polling stations could cast their ballots but no one else would be allowed in after that.
The state-run broadcaster said that counting would begin immediately, with initial results expected on Saturday.
Voting times extended till midnight across Iran
Iranian authorities have extended polling times in the country鈥檚 runoff presidential election until midnight, which has become tradition in Iran.
Under Iranian law that鈥檚 the limit 鈥 polls have to close at midnight as elections should only be held in a single day.
State TV reported that election official Mohsen Eslami announced the extension after more voters went to polling stations to cast ballots after the 6 p.m. official close of voting.
Many Iranians did not vote earlier in the day because of the hot weather and because Friday is a weekend day in Iran.
Such extensions are common for Iranian elections
Iran鈥檚 two presidential contenders have voted in the runoff election
Both hard-liner Saeed Jalili and reformist Masoud Pezeshkian voted Friday in south Tehran, home to some of the capital鈥檚 poorest neighborhoods in an attempt to stir their turnout.
As Jaili walked, his supporters gathered around chanting: 鈥淩aisi, your way continues!鈥 It鈥檚 a reference to the late hard-line President Ebrahim Raisi, who died in a helicopter crash in May.
Pezeshkian also drew a crowd chanting: 鈥淭he nation鈥檚 hope comes.鈥
He was accompanied by his ally, former foreign minister, Mohammad Javad Zarif, who helped reach Iran鈥檚 2015 nuclear deal with world powers.
Look at polling stations in Iran's capital indicate light turnout
An Associated Press survey of 30 polling stations across Iran鈥檚 capital saw a light turnout similar to that of last week, though the presidential election had hours yet to run.
State television in Iran has shown images of modest lines at polling places they were stationed at on Friday. However, many of those visited by the AP saw few voters. Tehran has nearly 7,000 polling places.
A heavy security force presence also could be seen on the streets.
Voter Samira Sharafi, a 34-year-old mother of a toddler, said she voted for reformist Masoud Pezeshkian. She described him as 鈥渕ore experienced鈥 than his hard-line rival, the former nuclear negotiator Saeed Jalili. Sharafi said she had voted for the hard-line parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf lasat week.
At another polling site, 27-year-old Yaghoub Mohammadi said he voted for Jalili, as he had voted in the first round.
鈥淗e is clean without dependency on powerful people in the establishment,鈥 Mohammadi said. 鈥淗e represents those who had no access to power.鈥
Though many within Iran鈥檚 Shiite theocracy had urged people to vote, former hard-line President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad struck a different tone after being barred as a candidate. He had said he didn鈥檛 support any candidate and a social media account associated with him said he left Iran on Friday for a trip to Turkey
Iranians vote at embassy in Iraq's capital, ambassador says turnout good
BAGHDAD 鈥 Dozens of voters arrived in minibuses to the Iranian embassy in Baghdad Friday morning, one of six voting centers set up for Iranians in Iraq.
Mohammad Kazem Al-Sadegh, Iran鈥檚 ambassador to Iraq said the centers had seen 鈥渁 good turnout from the Iranian community living in Iraq鈥 in the early morning hours.
鈥淲e hope that today the president will be decided on... who has a majority and seeks to serve the public,鈥 he said.
Iraq has a close relationship with its neighbor and Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani came to power with the backing of a coalition of factions close to Tehran. However, since the beginning of the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza, Baghdad has struggled to balance its relationship with the United States and Iran, particularly after a group of Iranian-backed Iraqi militias began firing drones at U.S. bases in retaliation for Washington鈥檚 support for Israel.
Iranians vote at gravesite of general who died in US strike
Iranians are again voting at the gravesite of a general slain in a 2020 U.S. drone strike in Iraq.
State television aired images of people lining up to vote at the grave of in Kerman.
Soleimani, a leader of the Guard鈥檚 expeditionary Quds Force, was seen a popular figure seen as a symbol of national resilience in the face of four decades of U.S. pressure.
For the U.S. and Israel, he was a shadowy figure in command of Iran鈥檚 proxy forces, responsible for fighters in Syria backing President Bashar Assad and for the deaths of American troops in Iraq.
A U.S. drone strike , 62, and others as they traveled from Baghdad鈥檚 international airport on Jan. 3, 2020.
The Pentagon said then-President Donald Trump ordered the U.S. military to take 鈥渄ecisive defensive action to protect U.S. personnel abroad by killing鈥 a man once referred to by Iran鈥檚 Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei as a 鈥渓iving martyr of the revolution.鈥
Acting president says early turnout is higher than in first round
Iran鈥檚 acting president Mohammad Mokhber said that more people have voted in a presidential runoff than had voted at the same time during the first round of last week, speaking about an hour after polls opened, and said he hoped to see higher turnout overall.
The first round, held June 28, saw the lowest turnout in the country's history, 39.9 percent.
It was not possible to confirm Mokhber鈥檚 claim.
Supreme Leader Khamenei casts vote
Iran鈥檚 Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei voted in the country鈥檚 runoff election aimed at choosing a new president for the country after forem President Ebrahim Raisi died in a May helicopter crash.
Khamenei urged people to vote and said, "God willing, people will vote and choose the best candidate.鈥
Last Friday鈥檚 vote saw less than 40% turnout.
State television showed people lining up to vote in many cities and towns. There are some 60,000 polling stations and more than 61 million eligible voters in the country of 85 million.
Pezeshkian finished around 10% ahead of Jalili in the first round, though neither received the 50% shared needed to win outright.
Officially, polls are set to remain open until 6 p.m., although Iran usually extends elections until midnight.
Who is running in the presidential runoff election?
Iran has two candidates set to face off on Friday鈥檚 runoff presidential election.
One is Saeed Jalili, 58, who served as Iran鈥檚 top nuclear negotiator under former President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad from 2007 to 2013. His hard-line vision for Iran has been criticized by opponents as being like the 鈥淭aliban鈥 and risks inflaming public tensions after years of economic hardship and mass protests.
The other is Massoud Pezeshkian, 69, who has allied himself with relatively moderate elements of Iran鈥檚 political system, including former Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, who helped reach Iran鈥檚 2015 nuclear deal with world powers.
Pezeshkian is a heart surgeon and a longtime lawmaker from Tabriz in northwestern Iran. Jalili supporters have criticized Pezeshkian's campaign for fear-mongering, while Khamenei has issued a veiled warning about outreach to the U.S.
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Michael Wakin in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, contributed.
What power does an Iranian president have?
Iranian presidents serve four-year terms and are limited to serving two terms. Iran鈥檚 president is subordinate to the supreme leader and over the recent years, the supreme leader鈥檚 power appears to have grown stronger amid tensions with the West.
However, a president can bend the state鈥檚 policies on both domestic issue and foreign affairs. Former President Hassan Rouhani, for example, struck the 2015 nuclear deal with world powers with the blessing of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. The hard-line tack taken by the late President Ebrahim Raisi also had Khamenei鈥檚 backing.
How is Iran ruled?
Iran describes itself as an Islamic Republic.
The Shiite theocracy holds elections and has elected representatives passing laws and governing on behalf of its people, but the unelected supreme leader has the final say on all state matters and the Guardian Council must approve all laws passed by the parliament.
Those who led a protest movement after hard-line President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad鈥檚 disputed 2009 re-election remain under house arrest, while security forces answering only to the supreme leader routinely arrest dual nationals and foreigners, using them as pawns in international negotiations. Mass protests in recent years have seen bloody crackdowns on dissent.
Meanwhile, hard-liners now hold all levers of power within the country. The Guardian Council approves all candidates and has never allowed a woman to run for president. It routinely rejects candidates calling for dramatic reform, stifling change.
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Follow AP鈥檚 coverage of the Iranian presidential election at .
