Iran decides in key polls

Iranians poured into polling stations yesterday to deliver their verdict on President Hassan Rouhani and his troubled efforts to rebuild ties with the world and kickstart the struggling economy.

There was a festive atmosphere in Tehran where Rouhani, a 68-year-old moderate cleric who spearheaded a 2015 nuclear deal with world powers, was mobbed by cheering supporters as he voted in a city centre mosque.

"The enthusiastic participation of Iranians in the election reinforces our national power and security," he said, as polling stations reported morning queues were far longer than usual.

Rouhani, who has framed the vote as a choice between greater civil liberties and "extremism", faces stiff competition from hardline cleric Ebrahim Raisi, 56, who has positioned himself as a defender of the poor and called for a much tougher line with the West.

"We must all respect the vote of the people," Raisi said as he cast his ballot in southern Tehran.

But his campaign had already started to complain about the conduct of the vote even before polls closed, saying there had been hundreds of "propaganda actions" by Rouhani supporters at voting booths, which are banned under election laws.

Raisi has targeted working-class voters hit by high unemployment and austerity measures, as well as those who worry that the values of the 1979 revolution are under threat.

Rouhani's central achievement was a deal with six powers led by the United States that eased crippling economic sanctions in exchange for curbs to Iran's nuclear programme -- efforts which he said must be protected from hardliners.

Ballot counting was expected to start at midnight and final results are expected within 24 hours of polls closing, TV reported. The elections are also for city and village councils.