Chairman of the Expediency Council Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani and head of the Secretariat of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) Esfandiyar Rahim-Mashaei have registered to run in Iran’s presidential race.
Former Iranian President Hashemi Rafsanjani and Rahim-Mashaei signed up for the June vote in the final moments of registration day for Iran’s 11th presidential election.
Incumbent President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad visited the process of registration at the Interior Ministry.
Registration of presidential hopefuls officially began on Tuesday. Hopefuls had until May 11 to sign up for the presidential vote.
So far a number of presidential hopefuls including Secretary of the Expediency Council Mohsen Rezaei, former First Vice-President and Reformist Mohammad-Reza Aref, Principlist lawmaker Gholam-Ali Haddad-Adel, Principlists Alireza Zakani, Secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council (SNSC) Saeed Jalili, former Foreign Minister Ali-Akbar Velayati have also signed up for the election.
The president of Iran is elected for a four-year term in a national election, and the Guardian Council vets the candidates for qualifications.
The Iranian Constitution stipulates that presidential candidates must be religious or political figures, be Iranian in origin, have Iranian citizenship, have resourcefulness and managerial skills, have no criminal record, be trustworthy and pious, and have firm belief in the fundamental principles of the Islamic Republic of Iran and the country’s official religion.
http://www.presstv.com/detail/2013/05/11/302957/hashemi-rahimmashaei-register/
