Iranian President Hassan Rouhani won a resounding re-election victory today as voters overwhelmingly backed his efforts to reach out to the world and rebuild the struggling economy
Iranian President Hassan Rouhani won a resounding re-election victory today as voters overwhelmingly backed his efforts to reach out to the world and rebuild the struggling economy.
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Rouhani, a 68-year-old moderate cleric who spearheaded a 2015 nuclear deal with world powers, took 23.5 million votes — 57 per cent — compared to 15.8 million —38.3 per cent — for hardline challenger Ebrahim Raisi.
But Iran's efforts to open up to the world face a stark challenge from US President Donald Trump, who has threatened to tear up the nuclear deal and is currently visiting its bitter regional rival Saudi Arabia.
Iranians nonetheless flocked to the polls, with turnout hitting 73 per cent. Election organisers were forced to extend polling by several hours yesterday, as they struggled to adapt to a population explosion that has added 20 million names to the voting rolls in the past two decades.
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