Iran Candidates Woo Wear Voters With Attractive Manifestos

Campaigning for the June 18 presidential election in Iran is in full swing, with candidates using state media and social media platforms to woo voters, amidst stringent pandemic curbs on gatherings.

Seven contenders vying for the top executive post in the sanctions-battered country have unveiled attractive poll manifestos and doled out myriad promises to bring people, disillusioned by economic woes and livelihood concerns, back into the fold.

Five conservatives and two reformists in the fray, while presenting different roadmaps for the country's future, seem to agree on one thing — dusting off the Hassan Rouhani era that apparently has few takers today.

Amidst the poll frenzy, lot of things are up for grabs — food subsidies, financial grants, free internet, unfiltered social media, jobs, healthcare benefits, affordable housing, single digit inflation, double digit growth and more, as promised by respective candidates.

Ebrahim Raeisi, Iran's judiciary chief and the top conservative candidate for the June 18 vote, is banking on the support of young voters, urging them "not to exact revenge" from the next administration for the hardships they faced during the Rouhani government.

Describing the young generation as the country's "most significant resource" and "driving force in the country's economy", Raeisi has sought to focus on issues facing the youth like unemployment, high marriage expenses, and rapidly increasing housing prices.

In a radio program last week, the two-time presidential candidate termed production and inflation as "inter-related", vowing to bring the inflation down to single figure by boosting production.

"We have no other option but to bring change. The people should feel that a change has come about," he remarked, while calling for "active economic diplomacy" to work in tandem with political diplomacy.

He has spoken of forming a "coalition government" with the country's manufacturers, entrepreneurs, and workers.

"People complain why Iran can build missiles but not quality cars, that is because technology is not passing from defense to the industry sector," Raeisi said during his visit to an industrial town over the weekend. "We will make that happen."

One of the poll promises made by Raeisi, which has stirred interest, is free internet to people from the lower strata of society.

US sanctions

While Raeisi has mounted his poll campaign on economic and production issues, fellow conservative candidate and former nuclear negotiator, Saeed Jalili, claims to have a "plan" to render US sanctions on Iran "ineffective."

Speaking on a radio program last week, Jalili said his administration will "deprive foreign governments of the tool of sanctions", while pointing to options of lifting, circumventing and rendering sanctions ineffective.

The former adviser to Iran's supreme leader has also touted the idea of "resistance economy", which calls for economic self-reliance and dependence on domestic capabilities of production.

Unlike other conservative hopefuls, Jalili has criticized the filtering of micro blogging site Twitter in Iran, describing cyberspace as an "opportunity" the governments should use.

He has also outlined a plan to tackle smuggling, which goes beyond smugglers at the border, and focuses on the larger network that includes corrupt officials within the system.

Alireza Zakani, a senior lawmaker and conservative hopeful, has emerged as one of the staunch critics of the Rouhani government's economic and foreign policies.

He has criticized the incumbent president for "failing to get necessary guarantees" in the 2015 nuclear deal (JCPOA), saying he will work to secure "Iranian nation's rights under the deal".

The three-time presidential candidate termed the 2015 nuclear accord "a faulty and deficient agreement" while describing the so-called "snapback" mechanism in the deal as "the sword of Damocles".

"In future government's foreign policy, you will see that the equations will change quickly," Zakani told reporters, saying the US would be forced to "beg" if he is elected as the president.

He has also promised "active and smart diplomacy", in which the "capacities of the region, neighbors, resistance front, and the emerging powers can be used."

Currency and governance

Mohsen Rezaei, the former Revolutionary Guards (IRGC) chief and a conservative candidate, has projected his potential administration as that of "action and breakthrough."

"We will do away with decisions made behind closed doors and looking at the society from behind the windows," he told reporters over the weekend, stressing that his administration will be" field-oriented".

Among the key promises he has made include stabilizing the Iranian currency rial and making it "the strongest currency in the region — after the dollar and euro".

He has also vowed to streamline coordination between stock exchange, insurance firms and banks, terming them "hearts of economy", for which he will form Financial Stabilization Council, on the model of US and Europe.

On the 2015 Iran nuclear deal, the veteran military figure says the US must lift all sanctions without conditions, echoing a demand made repeatedly by the conservatives-controlled parliament.

Former deputy parliament speaker and the youngest presidential candidate, Amir-Hossein Ghazizadeh Hashemi is pushing for "revolution" in governance mechanisms, criticizing the outgoing administration for "lack of management" and "social injustice".

His administration promises to be "transparent", which holds "constant dialogue" with citizens over social issues, creates a "competitive climate" clear of monopoly, and "upholds justice".

Hashemi had also made some attractive offers in the form of subsidies — 3,000,000 ($70) food packages and 500 million toman ($20,000) to young and needy married couples.

'Imaginary promises'

Former vice president and reformist candidate Mohsen Mehr-Alizadeh has urged Iranian voters to participate in large numbers in June 18 election to help bring "a third Khatami administration", referring to his political mentor Mohammad Khatami, who served as president between 1997 and 2005.

The former lawmaker, while calling for massive participation, rued disqualifications of key reformist candidates by Iran's top election supervisory body Guardian Council.

Mehr-Alizadeh believes the "competitive economy" can bolster production and bring down inflation, vowing to address the root cause of inflation "within three to four months" if he is wins the mandate.

AbdolNaser Hemmati, the former chief of Iran's Central Bank and one of the two reformist faces in the upcoming election, has in recent weeks sought to distance himself from the economic downturn during the Rouhani government, which perhaps led to his eventual ouster from the Central Bank.

He claims to have saved the country's economy by setting new monetary and foreign exchange policies, much to the surprise of fellow candidates and some market analysts.

Hemmati has promised to form a cabinet of technocrats, which will serve only one term, as according to him, government needs to be "technical" and "not political".

Unimpressed by the campaign promises, Ali Rabaie, spokesperson for the Rouhani government, termed some of the promises as "imaginary", warning voters not to fall for them. -