LEILA FADEL, HOST:
It's election day in Iran, and voters are being asked who they want to replace the late President Ebrahim Raisi, who died last month in a helicopter crash. Scores of hopefuls registered to run, but just six candidates were approved, and that list has grown even shorter as the vote approached. NPR's Peter Kenyon is following the story from Istanbul and joins me now. Good morning.
PETER KENYON, BYLINE: Hi, Leila.
FADEL: So bring us up to speed. This election in Iran is nothing like the long campaigns Americans are used to, right?
KENYON: No, no resemblance, really.
FADEL: (Laughter).
KENYON: Never mind months or years of campaigning nationwide - how about two weeks?
FADEL: Whoa.
KENYON: That's all these candidates had to convince voters that they are presidential material. There were five televised debates, but it's hard to imagine an American national election this brief.
FADEL: So who were the candidates?
KENYON: Well, the list has been shrinking, as you noted, as some hardliners dropped out, hoping to consolidate support. The top candidates probably are Saeed Jalili and Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf. Ghalibaf's name surfaced early on. He's speaker of the Iranian Parliament, strong government and military ties. He has run, without success, before. Jalili - a former Iranian nuclear negotiator, known even among conservatives for his strong anti-Western views. Former Interior Minister Mostafa Pourmohammadi is also running. As usual, there was no explanation of how Iran's Guardian Council - that's the body charged with vetting the candidates - selected these contenders, but there is a sense that Jalili in particular is favored by Iran's clerical establishment.
Now, there's also one reformist candidate. His name is Masoud Pezeshkian. He's not a well-known figure. Analysts suggests the Guardian Council may have picked a reformist in part to suggest it wasn't solely focused on hard-liners, but there could be another motive - voter turnout. It's been in notable decline in recent elections. There is a case to be made that the authorities thought that by adding in a reformist, they might encourage more Iranians to turn out and cast a vote. Still, there are signs this could be yet another ballot - many voters either skip or just submit blank ballots. That wouldn't be the first time, and analysts say it's not surprising, given the level of public distrust in the government, so essentially, hard-liners should be feeling fairly confident going into this vote. Some moderate and reform-minded voters, instead of firing up their get-out-to-vote efforts, are reportedly heeding calls to boycott the vote.
FADEL: So does this position, president of Iran, actually matter in a country where the ultimate power really sits with the country's supreme leader?
KENYON: Well, yes, the presidency may be Iran's highest elected office, but you're right - it's definitely not the most powerful. The president does appoint ministers, ambassadors, he signs treaties, but it's the supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who names military commanders, chief judges, members of the National Security Council, which the president nominally heads. The leader is also the one who picks the members of the Guardian Council itself, so the president really does operate in the shadow of the supreme leader.
FADEL: And this vote - I mean, it's obviously coming at a tough time in the Middle East, with Israel's war in Gaza, hostilities heating up between Israel and the Lebanese group Hezbollah. Is there any reason to think a new Iranian president would significantly alter Iran's posture or actions in the region?
KENYON: Good question, and I'd have to say it seems unlikely as things stand. If the reformist somehow pulls off an upset, that would be a big surprise. Surprises sometimes do happen in Iranian elections, but that also seems unlikely this time. In terms of significantly changing Iran's approach in the region - backing proxy militias, for instance - people aren't expecting any dramatic changes, at least for now.
FADEL: NPR's Peter Kenyon, in Istanbul. Thank you, Peter.
KENYON: Thanks, Leila.
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