Hassan Rouhani re-elected President of Iran

(Baonghean.vn) - On May 20, Iran's Ministry of Interior announced that Mr. Hassan Rouhani was re-elected president of the Islamic republic.

Mr. Rouhani went to vote on May 19. Photo: Internet

Mr Rouhani defeated conservative rival Ebrahim Raisi on May 19, winning a major reform victory in the predominantly Shiite Muslim nation.

Rouhani won 23,549,616 votes, or 57% of the vote, according to Interior Minister Abdolreza Rahmani Fazli.

Iran's state media (IRINN) announced: "IRINN congratulates Hassan Rouhani on his victory in the presidential election."

Rouhani, a moderate, was a key figure in the 2015 nuclear deal with the United States, the European Union and other partners, and his first term was marked by emerging international engagement.

According to the head of the State Election Commission of the Iranian Ministry of Interior, more than 40 million Iranian voters flocked to polling stations on May 19, and by the morning of May 20, more than 25 million votes had been counted.

Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was among the first to vote and urged others to do the same. "I believe that the presidential election is very important. The fate of the country is in the hands of the people," he said.

Raisi is widely seen as Mr Khamenei's favoured presidential candidate - in fact, he is often mentioned as a possible successor to the supreme leader.

History and hope, however, are on Mr Rouhani's side.

No sitting Iranian president has lost a second term since 1981, and Mr. Rouhani’s engagement with the outside world without banking and visa restrictions and economic sanctions has become a compelling reason for voters not to want the country isolated.

Phu Binh

(According to CNN)