Reuters

Tehran, Iran
March 2, 2003

Iran reformists accept defeat

Iran's political reformers accepted on Sunday that they had been crushed by conservative opponents in local council elections as Iranians vented their anger at the slow pace of change.

With most of Friday's vote counted, electoral officials said 14 of the 15 seats on Tehran's city council went to candidates from the previously unknown Developers of an Islamic Iran Coalition.

In its campaign literature, the conservative coalition vowed to "safeguard the achievements of the Islamic revolution" and prevent "materialistic people, groups and parties from influencing the process of decision-making."

Turnout in the capital was around 10 percent, although it was much higher in other parts of the country.

It was the first electoral upset for reformists since moderate President Mohammad Khatami swept to power in a 1997 landslide win promising to deliver greater social freedoms, justice and democracy to the country of 65 million people.

"We accept that we have lost the elections and we consider it our duty to take lessons from this defeat," Ali Shakourirad, a senior member of the pro-reform Islamic Iran Participation Front, told the official IRNA news agency.

"This defeat has made our path longer and more difficult," he added.
Another reformist legislator said the Tehran result, which was apparently mirrored in several other major cities, reflected growing disillusionment amongst Iran's disproportionately young population with the ability of reformers to deliver change.

"It shows that people are disappointed with the pace of reforms in the country and wanted to show us their disappointment in a more tangible way," the MP, who declined to be named, told Reuters.

Analysts said the vote reflected the effectiveness of hardcore support for conservatives in a low turnout, but cautioned against drawing parallels with parliamentary elections in 2004 and presidential elections in 2005.

"When it comes to presidential and parliamentary elections people can vote differently. There's more incentive to vote," said Siamak Namazi, managing director of the Atieh Bahar consulting group.

Following Khatami's 1997 election win reformists went on to win control of most city councils in Iran's first local elections in 1999 and wrested parliament from conservatives in 2000. Khatami followed up with a second resounding presidential triumph in 2001.

But success at the polls has not been matched by results.

Khatami's programme has encountered stiff opposition from religious hardliners in the country who fear an erosion of Islamic values. The hardliners wield considerable power in key institutions such as the judiciary and a constitutional watchdog which can veto legislation approved by parliament.

Analysts said the Tehran result was influenced by the failure of the previous city council which was dissolved in December after bitter infighting among reformist factions.

The disarray in the reformist camp was reflected in the ballot paper where Iran's 18 reformist parties presented three rival lists of candidates. In 1999 they had campaigned on a single ticket.

"Maybe the election will be a lesson to the reformists. They have to get over the differences which were brought out in the Tehran city council if they want to move forward," Namazi said.

© 2003 All Rights Reserved. Atieh Bahar Consulting.