Masoud Pezeshkian elected as Iran's President

Masoud Pezeshkian was declared Iran's new president on July 6 after he defeated his hardline rival Saeed Jalili by securing 53.7 % of the votes (16.3 million votes), while Jalili received 44.3 % of the votes (13.5 million).

“By gaining [the] majority of the votes cast on Friday, Pezeshkian has become Iran’s next president,” the interior ministry announced.

In his first address after winning, Pezeshkian, a heart surgeon and lawmaker promised to extend his hand to all Iranians and reach out to the West.

“We will extend the hand of friendship to everyone … we are all people of this country … we should use everyone for the progress of the country,” Pezeshkian said on state television.

In a post on X (formerly Twitter), Pezeshkian said, “The difficult path ahead will not be smooth except with your companionship, empathy, and trust. I extend my hand to you," which echoed of his earlier promise to “extend the hand of friendship to everyone” if he won.

Videos circulating on social media showed Pezeshkian’s overjoyed supporters dancing on the streets as his lead grew over Jalili to celebrate his victory.

On May 19, ex- President Ebrahim Raisi, died in a helicopter crash due to poor weather in mountains near the Azerbaijan border.

The helicopter was also carrying, Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian and six other passengers and crew who were all declared dead after the charred wreckage was found on May 20.