Iranian Presidential Election

Iran's Hardliner Raisi Wins Presidential Election

Wariness and Welcome for Iran's President-Elect

After many Iranians skipped voting in Friday's presidential election seeing it as a charade, hardliner Ebrahim Raisi has won Iran's presidential election.

Ebrahim Raisi, a conservative cleric and judiciary chief, has won Iran's presidential election in a landslide, according to official results announced Saturday. Raisi, who was widely seen as the favorite in the race, won 62% of the vote, according to the Interior Ministry.

The election was marked by low turnout, with only 48.8% of eligible voters casting ballots. This was the lowest turnout in any Iranian presidential election since the 1979 revolution.

Raisi's victory is a blow to Iran's reformists, who had hoped to make gains in the election. However, it is unclear how much power Raisi will have to implement his agenda, as he will face a hostile parliament and a powerful Revolutionary Guard Corps.

Raisi, 60, is a hardliner who has been a close ally of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. He has a long history in the judiciary and has been accused of human rights abuses, including the execution of thousands of political prisoners in the 1980s.

Raisi's victory is likely to have a significant impact on Iran's relations with the United States and its other international partners. Raisi is a fierce critic of the nuclear deal that Iran signed with world powers in 2015, and he has said that he will seek to renegotiate the deal.

Raisi's victory is also likely to embolden Iran's hardliners, who have been calling for a more aggressive foreign policy. This could lead to increased tensions in the Middle East, as Iran and its allies confront Israel and the United States.