DATE=2/21/2000
TYPE=CORRESPONDENT REPORT
TITLE=IRAN ELECTIONS (L)
NUMBER=2-259413
BYLINE=SCOTT BOBB
DATELINE=TEHRAN
CONTENT=
VOICED AT:
INTRO: Election officials in Iran say about one-third
of the votes have been tallied for the remaining 30
parliamentary seats in the Iranian capital, and
reformist candidates are winning most of these races.
Correspondent Scott Bobb reports from Tehran that
these returns, along with final results from the rest
of the country issued earlier Monday, indicate a
coalition of reformist and centrist candidates is set
to dominate Iran's next parliament, with three-fourths
of the seats.
TEXT: Final results are in for 207 of the
parliament's 290 seats. Reformist candidates and
their centrist allies have won more than 70 percent of
these.
Conservative candidates have about one-fourth of the
vote. The remaining seats are to be decided in a
runoff election next month.
Iranian observers following the tally say they expect
reformists to take most of the seats in Tehran, as
well as most of the seats in the runoff election.
This would give a predominant role in the next
parliament to advocates of change.
The election is expected to boost President Mohammad
Khatami's program of greater social and political
freedoms.
// OPT // Among the reported big winners in Tehran
are the president's brother, Mohammad-Reza Khatami,
Jamileh Kadivar, who is the sister of an imprisoned
prominent reformist, and Ali Reza-Nouri, brother of
another imprisoned reformist and former interior
minister, Abdullah Nouri. // END OPT //
Former President Hashemi Rafsanjani, a centrist, has
frequently been mentioned as the possible speaker in
the new parliament. But he is reportedly trailing in
Tehran, giving rise to speculation there may be a
major problem with his bid for the post.
One of the leaders of the former president's
Construction Party, Gholam-Hosein Karbaschi, Monday
called the election a good one.
/// KARBASCHI ACT IN FARSI, WITH TRANSLATION ///
[FARSI] The role of the minority and the
majority has now changed. The group that used
to be the majority are now the minority.
/// END ACT ///
Mr. Karbaschi said the role of his party is to provide
support for the government's program of economic
development and political reform.
Mr. Karbaschi is a former mayor of Tehran. He was
recently released from prison, after serving part of a
two-year term for what supporters say were
politically-motivated corruption charges.
One of the strongest supporters of the reformist
coalition is the union of university student groups,
called the Student Consolidation Office. One of the
group's leaders, Nima Fateh, told V-O-A (Monday) the
students support strong reformist candidates because
they want more freedom.
/// FATEH ACT IN FARSI, WITH TRANSLATION ///
[FARSI] An election means to express opinions,
and it means to peacefully change certain
things. There are things that are not in
accordance with the will of the students, and we
think that this was the proper method of
bringing about change, rather than resorting to
violent methods.
/// END ACT ///
Iranian political observers consider the students to
be among the more radical of the reformist groups, and
say their push for rapid reform could disrupt the next
parliament. The student leaders say, however, they
understand the need for gradual change, and will try
to be patient. (Signed)
NEB/FSB/WTW
21-Feb-2000 19:16 PM EDT (22-Feb-2000 0016 UTC)
NNNN
Source: Voice of America
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