Tuesday, 1 March 2016

Hey, Actual Good News! Moderates Win Big in Iranian Elections

Source: www.slate.com - Monday, February 29, 2016
Iranian moderates who back the historic nuclear deal reached last July  have won majorities in both parliament and the assembly that appoints the country's Supreme Leader , reports say.  In Iran's parliament, the New York Times writes, "reformists ... won at least 85 seats. Moderate conservatives, who also supported the nuclear agreement, won 73." Together that means 158 of the chamber's 290 seats will be held by non-"hardliner" legislators. In the country's 88-seat "assembly of experts," which would be responsible for selecting a successor to 76-year-old Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khameini, moderates won a 59-percent majority. President Hassan Rouhani—a centrist with reformist leanings who backs greater social and economic freedoms and better relations with the West —is up for reelection in 2017; the Guardian calls this year's results a "humiliating blow" to the hardliners who have objected to his policies.

All Related | More on Iran



from Breaking News http://ift.tt/1QnTcUs

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