Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was re-elected with more than 62 percent of the vote, the Iranian Interior Ministry said yesterday, sparking accusations of fraud from his main rival Mir-Hossein Moussavi, and leading Tehran police to ban public gatherings.
Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei confirmed the result and congratulated Ahmadinejad, calling him “president of all Iranians.”
Ahmadinejad was to address the nation on state TV late yesterday.
PHOTO: AP
Police in Tehran announced a ban on any public gatherings as Ahmadinejad supporters were jubilant, while those of Moussavi expressed disbelief and extreme skepticism.
Witnesses said there had already been clashes involving Moussavi supporters both with Ahmadinejad supporters and with police.
Iranian Interior Minister Sadeq Mahsoul said that the incumbent president gained 24.5 million votes and secured himself an absolute majority of 62 percent. Moussavi had received 33.7 percent — 13.2 million — of the votes, he said.
Moussavi had already declared himself winner of the election shortly after polling closed, and later said there had been large-scale irregularities.
“The Iranians know very well for whom they have voted and will neither accept the vote counting charade on [state] television nor follow those who have come to power with cheating and deception,” Moussavi said in a statement on his Web site.
Ahmadinejad’s win was by a far greater margin than most observers were expecting, and with the result vehemently disputed by Moussavi and his supporters, police in Tehran announced a ban on any public gathering and the interior ministry was sealed off, as were nearby streets.
Mahsoul said any gathering or demonstration needed prior permission from his ministry and any move without that permission would be considered illegal and be confronted by police. Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei, confirming both election and its results, congratulated Ahmadinejad on his landslide victory.
“The elected president is the president of all Iranians and also his opponents should now support and help him,” Khamenei said in a message carried by state TV.
“The people turned with their presence the election into an epic day,” the leader said, referring to an 85 percent record turnout.
The Iranian Constitution stipulates that Ayatollah Khamenei has the final say on all state affairs and could have potentially nullified the election if fraud had been proved.
Moussavi had said in a press conference on Friday night in Tehran that he was the clear winner, and accused the government of manipulating both the voting process and the counting.
“I am the definitive winner of the elections and the legitimate president of the people,” he said. “I have nothing but the support of the people — but with this support I will go to the very end.”
“I will not surrender to this dangerous charade ... I will disclose the secrets behind the curtain. This rulership of lies and tyranny will have a devastating impact on the destiny of our country,” the former Iranian prime minister warned.
The two other candidates in the poll — conservative Mohsen Rezaei and former parliament speaker Mehdi Karroubi — gained less than 2 percent and 1 percent of the votes respectively as the election turned into a two-horse race.
“What we could have turned into a national feast, we turned into national mourning — all we can do right now is sing songs of mourning,” said Karroubi, who also accused the interior ministry of fraud.
“I will not be intimidated by such actions and will continue my path and for me, this is just the beginning,” the moderate cleric said.
Mahsoul, however, dismissed the fraud claims, and said that his ministry would be ready to receive any legal complaints and reply to them accordingly.
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