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Reformists Rafsanjani frontrunner in polls Original Source Link: (May no longer be active)
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Iran's Rafsanjani Is Frontrunner to Win Election (Update1)
June 17 (Bloomberg) -- Iran's former president Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, who is campaigning for more jobs and a ``new chapter'' in his country's relations with the U.S., may win the first round of presidential elections today, the latest polls show.
Rafsanjani, president from 1991 to 1997, leads with 27 percent of the vote, a June 11 poll of 45,834 people conducted by state news agency IRNA found, without giving a margin of error or a survey date. Mostafa Moin, 54, his closest opponent, has 19 percent and Mohammad Reza Qalibaf, 43, a former air force chief in the Revolutionary Guard, came third with 17 percent.
Iran's voters go to the polls as the U.S. leads calls for new economic sanctions because of the country's uranium enrichment program. Rafsanjani, 70, plans to create more jobs at home and said in an interview with Cable News Network on June 14 that he will pursue a ``a policy of relaxation of tension'' with the U.S., which says Iran is a sponsor of state terrorism.
``The main danger for Iranians is radicalism, both in domestic affairs as well as vis-a-vis George Bush,'' said Saeed Laylaz, 43, an economist and adviser to Rafsanjani's campaign. ``Rafsanjani's goal is to avoid these two kinds of radicalism.''
U.S. Criticism
Bush, the U.S. president, today issued a statement denouncing the election as not meeting ``the basic requirements of democracy.''
``Iran's rulers denied more than a thousand people who put themselves forward as candidates, including popular reformers and women who have done so much for the cause of freedom and democracy in Iran,'' Bush statement said.
A poll by the Labor news agency published on June 10 showed Rafsanjani winning 33 percent of the vote, Qalibaf 19 percent and Moin 9 percent. A poll by the Iranian Students Polling Agency June 7 showed Rafsanjani winning 19 percent of the vote, Qalibaf 10 percent and Moin 7 percent. Iran has 46.8 million eligible voters, according to the Interior Ministry.
The election goes to a second round when the leading candidate fails to secure 50 percent or more of the vote. A second round may be held June 24 or July 1. It would be the first time in the Islamic Republic's history that a presidential election has gone to two rounds.
Rafsanjani, who stepped down from the presidency in 1997 after reaching the maximum two consecutive terms, didn't answer telephone, fax and e-mail requests for an interview. Current President Mohammad Khatami is leaving office after two terms.
Policy of Detente
In a June 10 interview with Agence France-Presse, Rafsanjani said it would be ``logical'' for Iran and the U.S. to end 25 years of hostility. As a precondition, he urged the U.S. to return some $8 billion in assets frozen after the revolution. In a June 14 interview with Cable News Network, he said he would follow ``a policy of relaxation of tension and detente'' with the U.S.
Rafsanjani's main issues are ``economic liberalization which is important for this youthful population which is struggling and possible rapprochement or dialogue with the U.S.,'' said Sanam Vakil, 30, an Iranian-born professor of Middle Eastern studies at Johns Hopkins University in Washington. ``Rafsanjani has said Iran's nuclear program is for peaceful purposes, and he intends to pursue negotiations for as long as needed to convince everyone.''
Nuclear Program
Iran is building a heavy-water nuclear reactor in Arak that it says is for generating electricity and the country has rejected calls by the U.S. for it to abandon the program. France, the U.K. and Germany have been seeking to end the program through negotiations. Iran is also paying Russia as much as $1 billion to build a reactor capable of generating about 1,000 megawatts of electricity in the southern city of Bushehr. In addition, it has nuclear research sites at Lavisan-Shian and Parchin.
Iran, holder of the world's No. 2 oil and gas reserves, agreed to suspend its uranium enrichment program in November. As a result of U.S. sanctions, Iran has relied on European and Asian companies to help develop its $480 billion economy.
Any new president will be under pressure from Iran's youth to create new jobs, according to analysts including Albrecht Frischenschlager. About two-thirds of the population are under the age of 30, and the estimated median age is 21, according to the Economist Intelligence Unit country report on Iran. The official unemployment rate is 11 percent, The EIU said, citing the government's official statistics.
Rafsanjani's ``mixture of a business mind and informal powers can push things through which others cannot do,'' said Albrecht Frischenschlager, a partner at Atieh Bahar consulting, who advises companies such as British-American Tobacco Plc and Rolls-Royce Group Plc.
Last Updated: June 16, 2005 20:38 EDT
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