Unique campaigner in Iran
The fact that a woman is prominently involved in an Iranian presidential campaign is significant. Any results of her involvement could be even more important.Iran's first first lady? -- The wife of presidential candidate Mir Hossein Mousavi is taking an unprecedented role in his campaign in a bid for women's vote
Mir Hossein Mousavi, the centrist candidate in Iran's June presidential elections, may be an old hand in politics but he certainly has a modern style for campaigning, at least in one sense... Mousavi... has surprised everyone by appearing in all his campaign trips with his wife..."No prime minister or president in the Islamic Republic has ever done that," says Shadi Sadr, a prominent lawyer and women's rights activist in Tehran. Iranian news websites and newspapers are full of photographs of Mousavi sitting next to his wife, seen in her full black Islamic chador. And she is a prominent figure in her own right... Known by her maiden name, Dr Zahra Rahnavard [right] was until recently the chancellor of Al-zahra University in Tehran and a political adviser to the former Iranian president, Mohammad Khatami...
Secondly, as the wife of one the main candidates, she is not just sitting there, "but really works as a campaigner". Rahnavard, who has a PhD in political science, is credited with having turned Al-zahra University into a centre for women's scientific research...
By welcoming his wife to the campaign trail, Mousavi is hoping for two results. Firstly, he wants to attract reformist votes...
Secondly, Mousavi wants to secure women's votes. Iranian women played a huge role in bringing Khatami to power for two consecutive terms, comprising 65% of his support in the 1997 elections. They were also instrumental in the parliamentary elections in 2000, which gave the reformists a sweeping majority in parliament. Over 65% of university students are women...
More than 1,000 candidates seek Iran presidency
Iran on Tuesday opened the five-day period for hopefuls to formally register for the country's tenth presidential election, expected to be a key test for the country's dominant conservatives.
More than 1,000 candidates registered online from May 2 to run in the election, the interior ministry said according to the state-run Press TV...
At the end of May, the Guardian’s Council, in charge of inspecting the ideological qualification of the candidates, will announce the names of those selected to run in the election...
According to the Iranian constitution, candidates should have a political and religious background, hold Iranian citizenship and believe in the principles of the Islamic republic and the official religion of the country.
The candidates have to be at least 18 years old but the upper age limit has not been specified...
The presidential election will be held on June 12 where all Iranians aged 16 and above are eligible to vote.
Labels: elections, Iran, politics, women
posted by Ken Wedding @ 5:37 AM
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