Iran’s Raisi Calls For 'Spectacular Election' Amid Rigging Concerns

Expecting low voter turnout, Iran's President Ebrahim Raisi has called on state officials to make sure that the parliamentary elections on March 1 will be “spectacular.” 

On the same day, two former Interior Ministry officials warned about possible election manipulation.

Despite his government's inability to address the country's multiple crises since he assumed office in August 2021, Raisi urged officials "to solve societal issues, inspire hope, and motivate the people to achieve a high turnout," aligning with Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei's call.

While Raisi's comments may have sounded like mere slogans, they shared a commonality with Khamenei's statement made a day earlier: both leaders addressed officials rather than the people, whom they desperately need to turn out at the polls.

Despite his seemingly agnostic demeanor, it appears that Raisi is aware of the root cause of Iranians' reluctance to vote, which is a lack of motivation and hope. In other words, he recognizes that his government and the entire Islamic regime of Iran have lost their legitimacy. Both leaders' solution to this problem is to rally officials to encourage people to participate in the elections.

Many Iranian scholars and even regime insiders have been saying during the year that long standing political and economic impasses have eroded people's hope the future. Consequently, most individuals and businesses struggle to plan beyond the next week.

Moreover, political biases enforced by hardline bodies like the Guardian Council and excessive pressures on the people through unhelpful legislation that threatens national interests have created significant rifts between the government and the nation, leaving the populace with little motivation for political engagement.

Nonetheless, this is one area where officials cannot take action without the people's active participation. The Iranian government, which has prioritized the interests of Hamas over the long-neglected demands of the Iranian people in the past three months, is now attempting to motivate unpopular officials to drive voter participation.

At the same time, hardliners in Iran, including Raisi and his father-in-law, Ahamd Alamolhoda, the firebrand Friday Imam of Mashhad, deny the existence of this problem. Alamolhoda said last week that economic problems would not stop the people from going to the polls. Some politicians speculate that Alamolhoda is likely to intervene in the election process by issuing a list of his preferred ultraconservatives candidates.

Meanwhile, two former Deputy Interior Ministers for Political Affairs, have warned that the Election Headquarters' decision to accept documents other that official ID cards from voters increases the likelihood of election manipulation in March. They also noted that the off-line voting system in many polling stations could lead to "errors" in vote counting.

The election headquarters has allowed voters to use documents such as driving licenses, smart cards (e.g., certificates of completion of compulsory military service), and passports for identification at polling stations, potentially facilitating multiple voting by individuals.

Ali Asghar Ahmadi and Mohammad Hossein Moghimi, who worked under the Rouhani Administration said only using the smart ID card will effectively eliminate the possibility of multiple voting by one individual.

All those problems aside, some reformists still insist that they are not likely to vote in the upcoming election.Reform Front Spokesman Javad Emam said: "We won't take part in meetings [with top officials] for begging or compromise." Referring to the disqualification of reformist candidates and Raisi's recent meeting with politicians and party leaders, he said: "Even Raisi has questioned the validity of Guardian Council's vetting." At that meeting, Raisi said "everybody is qualified to run for election unless the contrary is proved."