Iran's Ambassador Votes in Presidential Runoff in New Delhi Amid Low Turnout

Iran's Ambassador to India, Iraj Elahi, cast his vote in New Delhi during Iran's presidential runoff to elect a successor for Ebrahim Raisi. The election follows Raisi's death in a helicopter crash, with voter turnout hitting a historic low. Reformist Pezeshkian faces hardline conservative Jalili.

On Friday, Iran's Ambassador to India, Iraj Elahi, cast his vote in the second phase of Iran's presidential election at a polling centre in New Delhi. The election aims to find a successor to former President Ebrahim Raisi, who died in a helicopter crash. Elahi expressed optimism that a new president would be named by tomorrow.

'Today marks the second round of the presidential election,' Elahi told ANI, noting that over 700 polling centres are accepting votes from Iranians. 'We hope to have a new president by tomorrow morning... No changes are expected in Iranian foreign or internal policy,' he added, emphasizing that both leading candidates aim to bolster Iranian power domestically and internationally.

This election follows the tragic loss of President Raisi on May 19. The first round of voting recorded a low turnout, with only 39.92 percent of eligible voters participating—the lowest since Iran's 1979 Islamic Revolution. Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Iran's supreme leader, has urged citizens to vote, calling it the 'deciding round' to elect a new president.

The final candidates are reformist Masoud Pezeshkian and hardline conservative Saeed Jalili. Conservatives generally oppose Western relations and external influence. Originally scheduled for June next year, the election was advanced to meet a 50-day constitutional deadline triggered by Raisi's passing.

The snap election on June 28 took place within the legally mandated timeframe following the helicopter crash that killed Raisi and seven others, including Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian.

(With inputs from agencies.)