Iran election seen as test of clerical rulers

STORY: Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei casts his vote, the first to do so in all Iran.

He has called it a religious duty.

Iranians voted on Friday (March 1) in a parliamentary election that is seen as a test of the clerical establishment's legitimacy.

As frustrations grow over economic woes and restrictions on political and social freedom.

"Make your friends happy," Khamenei tells voters, urging them to turn out, "and disappoint the ill-wishers."

In 2022, anti-government protests were sparked by the death in custody of a young Iranian-Kurdish woman, Mahsa Amini.

Pro-reform Iranians have painful memories of the violent crackdown that followed, involving mass detentions and executions.

It was some of the worst political turmoil since the 1979 Islamic Revolution and the election is the first formal measure of public opinion since then.

Official polls suggest only about 41% of eligible Iranians will vote.

Below the record low of 42.5% in 2020.

Iran's rulers need a high turnout to repair their legitimacy, damaged by the unrest.

Which is why Iranian activists and opposition groups are discouraging voters.

Distributing the hashtags #VOTENoVote and #ElectionCircus widely on social media.

Imprisoned Nobel Peace Prize laureate Narges Mohammadi, a women's rights advocate, has called the election a "sham."

Hardliners have dominated Iran's parliament for more than two decades.

It wields little influence, since Khamenei determines issues like foreign policy and the row with the West.