Iran polls show run-off likely between Jalili, Pezeshkian
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With millions of votes counted, preliminary results show that Iranian presidential candidate Saeed Jalili is in the lead as Masoud Pezeshkian lags slightly behind.
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In this picture made available by Iranian state-run TV, IRIB, shows presidential candidates Masoud Pezeshkian, center, Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf, left, and Saeed Jalili in Tehran, Iran, June 17, 2024 (AP)
The Iranian news agency Tasnim has reported that voter turnout in the Iranian presidential election has reached approximately 40% in preliminary results, with expectations pointing towards a second round of voting.
After counting 10,366,410 votes, presidential candidate Saeed Jalili has received 4,266,386 votes, while candidate Massoud Pezeshkian has garnered 4,244,815 votes, according to Iran's Ministry of Interior.
Meanwhile, presidential candidate Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf secured 1,385,083 votes, and candidate Mostafa Pourmohammadi received 80,506 votes.
The Ministry of Interior will announce preliminary election results and participation rates approximately every hour as vote counting continues, with the official result expected to be announced on Saturday.
In related news, Jalili's campaign manager stated on the social media platform X that "the election will go to a second round."
An Al Mayadeen correspondent to Tabriz reported that the Ministry of Interior was just hours away from announcing the election results. According to polls, the election is likely to proceed to a second round.
Similarly, Al Mayadeen's correspondent at the Iranian Ministry of Interior indicated that, with the start of the vote-counting process, expectations are leaning towards a run-off round.
Iranians are currently in the midst of selecting the 9th president of the Islamic Republic of Iran.
![In a 2021 interview with Frontline by former US special representative James Jeffrey, he says he had "engaged with [HTS] via backchannels while serving in President Trump’s State Department. (Al Mayadeen English; Illustrated by Batoul Chamas)](https://alpha-en-media.almayadeen.net/media/image/2024/12/21/b4a69f2e-8682-43e4-9d37-49482b304ab3/3.png?v=2&format=webp "In a 2021 interview with Frontline by former US special representative James Jeffrey, he says he had \"engaged with [HTS] via backchannels while serving in President Trump’s State Department. (Al Mayadeen English; Illustrated by Batoul Chamas)")
