Azernews.Az

By Kamila Aliyeva

Registration of candidates for the presidential elections in Iran will begin on April 11 and end on April 16, Iran’s interior minister and head of the election body, Ali Asghar Ahmadi said on April 3.

Immediately upon the closing of registration, the 12-member Guardian Council, a body that oversees elections and legislation, will vet candidates from April 16 to April 20.

The body may extend the vetting period for five days, April 21-25, looking into candidates’ grievances.

On April 26-27, the Interior Ministry, which is charged with all executive affairs related to elections, will formally announce a final shortlist of candidates approved by the Guardian Council.

On April 28, candidates start campaigning until 24 hours before May 19, the voting date for the 12th presidential and 5th city and council elections.

As many as 287,425 people were registered as candidates for positions in city and village councils throughout the country.

Iran’s President Hasan Rouhani earlier stated that he will run for the next term in the upcoming presidential election set for May 19.

President Rouhani won the 2013 presidential election, and if reelected, this will be his second term in office.

He remains popular for stabilizing the economy and ending sanctions through a nuclear deal with world powers. After lifting the sanctions, Rouhani visited a number of European states and made deals that worth billions of dollars. European companies started looking for investment opportunities in the growing Iranian market.

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Kamila Aliyeva is AzerNews’ staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @Kami_Aliyeva

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