Iran reverses ban on 1,500 election candidates

Hard-line Guardian Council had earlier disqualified almost all relative moderates from running for parliament

By AP 6 February 2016, 11:34 am

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Illustrative photo of two Iranian women casting their ballots during the presidential and municipal councils elections in a polling station in Tehran, Iran, Friday, June 14, 2013 (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)

Iran’s constitutional watchdog, the hard-line Guardian Council, has reversed a ban on 1,500 candidates who had registered to run in February 26 parliamentary elections.

State TV on Saturday said that a list of approved candidates has been conveyed to Iran’s Interior Ministry.

The council, which is responsible for vetting candidates, had disqualified a large number of moderates, but it’s not clear how many of the approved candidates are considered to be reformists.

Nine moderate parties issued a statement last month complaining that only 30 of the 3,000 reformist candidates fielded across the country were allowed to run.

The upcoming vote is seen as a showdown between hard-liners and moderates, who hope for a boost in the wake of the newly implemented nuclear deal and the lifting of international sanctions.