Iran’s Presidential Hopefuls: Starkly Different Or Two Sides Of The Same Coin?

Reformist hopeful Masud Pezeshkian will face off against hard-line candidate Saeed Jalili in a presidential runoff on July 5, after no candidate managed to secure enough votes to win the July 28 election. The first round saw a record-low turnout for a presidential vote, with more than 60% of the electorate shunning the ballot box. Elections in the Islamic republic are tightly controlled with candidates being preselected by an unelected body dominated by hard-liners.