Iran has opened registration for candidates hoping to succeed President Hassan Rouhani, who will step down following the June 18 elections after serving the maximum two consecutive terms allowed.
The five-day registration period at the interior ministry ends on Saturday, with the names of candidates then handed to the conservative-dominated Guardian Council for vetting.
According to the interior ministry, over 20 public figures have officially announced their intention to run, with the final list of those qualified due on May 26-27.
Former Revolutionary Guards Corps’ official Saeed Mohammad, a general and an advisor to Guards commander Major General Hossein Salami, was one of the first to submit his name Tuesday.
Another was Mohammad Hassan Nami, an army general who was briefly telecoms minister under former ultra-conservative president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.
According to the Hamshahri daily newspaper, Nami is a former military attache to North Korea, and also holds a doctorate in “public management” from Pyongyang’s Kim Il-sung University.
Several top political figures are seen as possible presidential hopefuls, but are yet to declare whether they will run. They include former parliament speaker Ali Larijani, judiciary chief Ebrahim Raisi and Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif.
This year’s election is also expected to feature a string of military figures, stirring unease over a possible militarisation of the Islamic republic’s politics.
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