As his supporters cheered, Hamid Rasaee lifted up a giant purple key, the symbol of Iran’s reformist president, and broke it decisively in two. Four years after he was locked out of parliament after a defeat by moderates, the ultraconservative firebrand was gearing up for a victorious return in elections today.
The clerical regime has dramatically stacked the polls in its favour with the disqualification of thousands of reformist candidates, signalling the closure of hardline ranks in a deepening confrontation with the United States.
Victory for the hardliners would spell a decisive end to President Rouhani’s efforts to engage with the West after President Trump’s decision to withdraw from the 2015 nuclear deal and reimpose sanctions, dashing his promises of an economic transformation.
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