TEHRAN, June 29, 2024 (BSS/AFP) - Masoud Pezeshkian, Iran's sole reformist
candidate, has risen from relative obscurity to leading the votes in the
first round of the Islamic republic's presidential elections, stunning
supporters and rivals alike.

Pezeshkian, 69, won the largest number of votes in a first round on Friday
that saw him face off against three figures from the conservative camp, all
vying to replace late president Ebrahim Raisi who died in a helicopter crash
last month.

He garnered more than 10,400,000 votes, while ultraconservative former
nuclear negotiator Saeed Jalili came in second place with more than 9,400,000
votes.

The two will compete against each other in a runoff vote next Friday.

In the lead-up to the elections, Iran's main reformist coalition threw its
weight behind Pezeshkian, with former presidents Mohammad Khatami and the
moderate Hassan Rouhani declaring support for his bid.

Pezeshkian's push for Iran's presidency comes amid heightened regional
tensions over the Gaza war, a dispute with the West over Iran's nuclear
programme and domestic discontent over the state of Iran's sanctions-hit
economy.

- 'Out of isolation' -

The outspoken heart surgeon had publicly criticised the Raisi government over
its handling of the death in custody of Iranian Kurd Mahsa Amini, who had
been arrested for allegedly violating the Islamic republic's strict dress
code for women.

In a post on Twitter, now known as X, at the time, he called on the
authorities to "set up an investigation team" to look into the circumstances
behind her death.

In recent campaigning, he has maintained his stance, criticising the
enforcement of mandatory hijab laws which require women to cover their head
and neck in public since shortly after the 1979 Islamic revolution.

"We oppose any violent and inhumane behaviour towards anyone, notably our
sisters and daughters, and we will not allow these actions to happen," he
said.

Pezeshkian was born on September 29, 1954, in the city of Mahabad in the
northwestern province of West Azerbaijan.

He has represented Tabriz in Iran's parliament since 2008, served as health
minister in Khatami's government, and supervised sending medical teams to the
war front during the Iran-Iraq conflict between 1980 and 1988.

In 1993, Pezeshkian lost his wife and one of his children in a car accident.
He never remarried and raised his remaining three children -- two sons and a
daughter -- alone.

Campaigning on behalf of Pezeshkian was Mohammad Javad Zarif, Iran's
combative former foreign minister who helped secure the landmark 2015 nuclear
deal with world powers, which fell through three years later.

The reformist candidate has called for reviving the accord -- which sought to
curb Tehran's nuclear activity in return for sanctions relief -- to get Iran
"out of isolation".

"If we manage to lift the sanctions, people will have an easier life while
the continuation of sanctions means making people's lives miserable," he said
during one of his televised interviews.

If he wins the runoff round, Pezeshkian will be tasked with applying state
policy outlined by the supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who wields
ultimate authority in the country.