Khamenei urges Iranians to ignore calls to boycott polls

Supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei yesterday urged Iranians to ignore calls to boycott next month's presidential election, after several hopefuls were barred from running against ultraconservative candidates. Iranians are set to elect a successor to President Hassan Rouhani on June 18 amid widespread discontent over a deep economic and social crisis, and after the violent repression of waves of protests in the winter of 2017-18 and in 2019. Khamenei's remarks appear to suggest that he does not intend to intervene and reverse the disqualification of any candidates, as he did in 2005. His declaration comes a day after Rouhani said he had asked the supreme leader to intervene to ensure greater "competition" in the presidential election. Iran's candidate-vetting Guardian Council on Tuesday disqualified moderate conservative Ali Larijani and first vice-president Eshaq Jahangiri, as well as firebrand former president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.