Hard-liners dominate Iran parliamentary vote that saw a record-low turnout and boycott calls

AP News-March4th2024

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Iranian hard-line politicians dominated the country’s vote for parliament, results released Monday showed, maintaining their hold on the legislature in a vote that saw a record- low turnout amid boycott calls.

While praising Iranians for withstanding “bad weather and continuous propaganda by the enemy,” Interior Minister Ahmad Vahidi said the vote saw 25 million ballots cast — a turnout of just under 41%. The lowest previous came in the last parliamentary election in 2020, which saw a 42% turnout.

It took days for Iran to announce the turnout statistics without explanation. The Interior Ministry run Iranian elections, which have no substantial international observation.

Friday’s vote turnout came after authorities kept polls open an additional six hours. Parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf even posted online, as polls appeared largely empty in Tehran, to urge people to call “their friends or acquaintances right now and convince them to participate in the elections.”

It remains unclear whether turnout was depressed by voter apathy or an active desire to send a message to Iran’s theocracy, though some in the country pushed for a boycott, including imprisoned Nobel Peace Prize laureate Narges Mohammadi. The vote also was the first since the 2022 mass protests over the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini after being arrested over allegedly not wearing her required hijab to the liking of authorities

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