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Iran holds runoff presidential vote pitting hard-line former negotiator against reformist lawmaker
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In this photo made available by Iranian state-run TV, IRIB, Iranian presidential candidate Saeed Jalili, left, a hard-line former nuclear negotiator, and reformist candidate Masoud Pezeshkian greet one another at the conclusion of a debate at the TV studio in Tehran, Iran, Monday, June 1, 2024. - photo by Morteza Fakhri Nezhad/IRIB via AP
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Iranians began voting Friday in a runoff election to replace the late President Ebrahim Raisi, killed in a helicopter crash last month, as public apathy has become pervasive in the Islamic Republic after years of economic woes, mass protests and tensions in the Middle East. Voters face a choice between the hard-line former nuclear negotiator Saeed Jalili and Masoud Pezeshkian, a heart surgeon and longtime parliament member who has allied himself with moderates and reformists within Iran's Shiite theocracy. An initial round of voting June 28 saw no candidate get over 50% of the vote, forcing the runoff.