TEHRAN, Iran – Emboldened President Hassan Rouhani has said that his country is open to extend its open policy towards the world as he delivered his victory message in a televised press conference after the electoral authority declared him the winner in Iran’s Friday’s presidential elections.
The message of the election that saw him winning most of the votes is choosing "peace and friendship" over "violence and extrimism," Rouhani said.
He said that Iranian people have spoken and have chosen “union over polarization”, and that everyone has to respect the verdict.
He said the vote was against those who were calling for the isolation of the country from the world stage.
“You said no to those who were calling to go backward or stop us [from development,” Rouhani said referring to the decisive vote Friday that won him 70% of the votes, calling the election campaign as “most competitive” in the history of Iran.
He thanked the Iranian people who chose “to continue my mission” in his second term in office, leaving him with a “heavy burden” that he said needs the help from all the people, friends and foe, to carry.
He said that the people of Iran have spoken and chosen the path the government should take for the next four years.
“[Iran] Is prepared to extend its relations with the world based on mutual respect and own national interest,” Rouhani said in a message to the outside world meant to invite more investment and stronger relations with foreign countries in light of the nuclear deal his government signed with the western countries that lifted crippling sanctions in return for monitoring the country’s nuclear program by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).
He warned though that Iran’s relations under his presidency do not accept “intimidation or humiliation," adding that this is the most important message from the people of Iran to the outisde world.
Addressing domestic affairs, he said that the Kurds, Turkmens and other ethnic and religious components all headed to the polls proving that they are all one “united nation” that go beyond the class, ethnic or geographic differences.
“You are one nation, have one state, want one president who can be the president of all people, and serve all people.”
He celebrated the diversity in Iran calling it “the land full of stars”.
Rouhani greeted the Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei whom he said guided the people to the polls with his “wisdom”.
Khamenei has the last say over all key issues, including the nuclear deal, and in the commander-in-chief of all armed forces.
In a message meant to undermine the state media ban on the former reformist president Mohammad Khatami, Rouhani thanked him in name for his support to his government and election campaign, in addition to the late former president Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani who died in January, and was a staunch supporter of Rouhani’s “government of prudence and hope.”
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4:21 pm
Final results announced by Iran's interior ministry Saturday afternoon, local time, shows President Hassan Rouhani leading far ahead of his conservative rival with 57% of the votes, or nearly 23 million votes out of more than 40 million votes cast on Friday's general elections.
Iranian officials and some foreign leaders have already congratulated Hassan Rouhani on his win that means a continuation for his open policy towards the outside world and the landmark nuclear deal agreed between Iran and the western powers signed under President Rouhani's first term in office.
His conservative rival Rbrahim Raisi, who is said to have close ties with the Supreme Leader, had complained about what he called irregularities committed by Rouhani's campaign.
There was a high turnout of 70% that seems to have favoured Rouhani's win, with voting extended three times lasting until midnight, as permitted by the election law.
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12:07 pm
Incumbent President Hassan Rouhani has been declared winner of Iran’s presidential election, Iran’s state TV announced.
Rouhani had described the election as a choice to “continue the path of peacefulness or path of tension.”
In his first term, he had signed a landmark nuclear deal with Western powers, something he said his rival candidates had wanted to scrap.
Considered a moderate, many Iranians hope Rouhani will introduce reforms and improve relations internationally.
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10.21 am
With over 40 million votes counted, Rouhani has a substantial lead, receiving over 22.7 million votes, 56.88 percent, Iranian media has reported, citing the Interior Ministry’s Chairman of Election Headquarters Ali Asghar Ahmadi.
Rouhani’s closest rival, Ebrahim Raisi, has garnered more than 15.4 million, 38.55 percent, of votes tallied.
Over 1.1 million votes have been found invalid thus far.
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8.20 am
TEHRAN, Iran — Incumbent President Hassan Rouhani leads in the Iranian presidential election by over 4 million votes, according to interior ministry which announced the preliminary results Saturday morning local time after counting nearly 26 million ballots. The ministry said 40 million votes had been cast which indicates a turnout of about 70 percent.
Announcing the preliminary results, head of the election committee Ali Asghar Ahmadi said Rouhani had received 14.6 million of the votes counted, while his conservative opponent Ebrahim Raisi received 10.1 million.
Iran’s state media announced early Saturday morning that Rouhani “was in the lead” and that the final results would be announced before 2 pm local time.
Former presidential candidate, Eshagh Jahangiri, who supported Rouhani after dropping out of the race last week, tweeted that he “congratulated” the “great victory of the Iranian people” after the initial results were announced.
The Instagram account of Rouhani ally, former president Mohammad Khatami, also showed a picture of Rouhani making a victory sign and ran the slogan "Hope prevailed over isolation".
Earlier Rouhani's chief of staff Hamid Aboutalebi tweeted that Rouhani had won 60 percent of the vote. He cited no evidence.
The big turnout appeared to have favored Rouhani whose backers have over the past month expressed concern that low turnout would propel conservative candidates to power.
Voting hours were twice extended on Friday to accommodate the numbers of people wanting to vote. Long lines, however, remained when polling stations closed in major centres such as Tehran and they were unable to vote, IRNA news reported.
Mostafa Mir Salim and Sayed Mostafa Hashemi Taba are trailing with 297 thousand and 139 thousand votes, respectively.
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