The Guardian view on Iran’s moderate president: modest hopes must be acted upon | Editorial

Masoud Pezeshkian’s surprise victory suggests a recalibration by the regime, but he will have limited room for manoeuvre

Even when the regime unexpectedly approved the candidacy of a moderate, many Iranians opted out of the presidential election, suspecting that if voting really changed anything, the authorities would probably have made it illegal. That was reflected in the first round’s record low turnout: just 39.9%.

Yet Masoud Pezeshkian made it to the second round and has now swept to victory, beating his hardline opponent, Saeed Jalili, by 16.3m votes to 13.5m votes. Though some boycotted the runoff too, turnout shot up to 49.8% as the public realised that the former heart surgeon and health minister could make it to the top.

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