Public Policy Department

Iranian Election Sparks International Debate

Iranians went to the voting booth on Friday, June 12th, for their 10th presidential election since the 1979 Islamic Revolution. After election results were prematurely announced, naming Mahmoud Ahmadinejad president again, riots erupted in the street alleging election fraud. This riot, led by the nation’s youth (over 66% of Iranians are under the age of 30) has spurred international attention. Rallies, protests, and violent squalls have ravaged throughout the country as Iranians citizens ask, “Where is my vote?”

Ahmadinejad’s chief opponent, Mir Hossein Mousavi, has declared himself the true winner of the election. In previous elections, tallies began to trickle in hours after the polls closed; this year millions of votes poured in almost immediately from a huge turnout of about 85 percent of Iran’s 46.2 million voters. The final outcome: 62.6 percent of the vote to Ahmadinejad and 33.75 for Mousavi, a former prime minister from the 1980s. Much of the electorate, however, are unsatisfied with the results.

Ahmadinejad accused the foreign media of producing coverage that harmed the Iranian people, saying “a large number of foreign media … organized a full-fledged fight against our people.”

Authorities also called foreign journalists with visas to cover the elections, including members of The Associated Press, and told them they should prepare to leave the country. Italian state TV RAI said one of its crews was caught in the clashes in front Mousavi’s headquarters. Their Iranian interpreter was beaten with clubs by riot police and officers confiscated the cameraman’s tapes, the station said.