in Iran, elections only mobilize conservatives

The conservatives now hold all the power in Iran and the moderates have no chance of winning the elections this Friday.

Only one issue: participation. In Iran, polling stations opened on Friday March 1 for the legislative elections. Voters vote to renew the Parliament and the Assembly of Experts, responsible in particular for appointing the Supreme Guide. And power will remain in the hands of the conservatives: reformers and moderates have no chance of obtaining a majority in Parliament.

Leaving his polling station in the north of Tehran, Ali Motahari, outgoing MP and head of the list of reform candidates, admits that his camp is weakened: “Some reformers are complaining because they were disqualified and unable to run, he said. From the beginning they were unable to campaign and were not active.”

“Defend Iran against its enemies”

A year and a half after the demonstrations of the Women, Life, Freedom movement, the protesting youth of Tehran are turning away from the polls. It is conservative voters who are moving. Ali, 19, came to pray at the Mosalla Grand Mosque in Tehran before voting: “This election is an important test for the Iranian people. It is our Islamic and political duty to vote.”

High abstention would reduce the legitimacy of power. Mohammad Hosseini, Iranian vice-president in charge of parliamentary affairs, is confident. “Despite all the propaganda about abstention, today you will see: throughout the country, people will come out to vote and defend their country”. This is the official line, that of Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei: to vote is to defend Iran against its enemies.

A speech that no longer mobilizes a large part of Iranians. The country is sinking into a serious economic crisis, triggered by the United States’ exit from the Iran nuclear deal in 2018 and the return of Western sanctions. Official figures suggest 42% inflation over one year, while the Iranian currency, the rial, lost around 45% of its value over the same period. Leaving a currency exchange office in the capital, Iman sells foreign currencies in the street. Dollars, euros, cash. He is speculating, although it is illegal. “We buy a little below the market rate then we resell them. The exchange rate is worse than ours and they often refuse to change certain foreign currencies.”

“The sanctions are me who suffer, not the children of the leaders”

Thick wads of 500,000 rial notes pass from hand to hand. Mobina came to buy euros on the black market. She is 18 years old. She wants to live in Germany and to obtain her visa, she must prove that she has 12,000 euros. She has been saving for a year and a half. “When I began my efforts to emigrate, the exchange rate was 300,000 rials for one euro and at the moment, it is 638,000 rials. The working classes are affected more than others by the sanctions. It’s me who suffers from this, not the children of Iranian leaders who have no problem.”

With the collapse of the national currency, prices soared. Behind the counter of his store, Omid, a food wholesaler, is in despair. “Customers are unhappy, everyone is dissatisfied. The exchange rate must fall. It’s the only solution. If the dollar rate falls, prices will follow.” For this trader, the elections will change nothing. He believes that the country’s economic situation can only get worse.