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Khamenei loyalists set to defeat Ahmadinejad
Loyalists of Irans supreme leader, who is implacably hostile to the West and its drive to curb Tehrans nuclear work, look set to triumph in Irans parliamentary poll at the expense of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in a contest among hard-liners.Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei turned against the man he backed in a disputed presidential vote in 2009 after Ahmadinejad challenged his authority over top government posts. Ahmadinejad, first elected in 2005, had shown signs of seeking real power for the presidency, which in the Islamic Republic has always played second fiddle to the supreme leader in all state matters such as nuclear and foreign policy. But Khamenei remains in the driving seat and the outcome of the March 2 election is unlikely to alter Irans defiance of the West over its nuclear program, despite ever harsher sanctions and the possibility of an eventual military confrontation. An alliance of clerics, elite Revolutionary Guard and influential bazaar merchants has made sure many pro-Ahmadinejad politicians cannot register to run for the assembly. Politicians say the Council of Guardians, made up of six clerics and six jurists who vet candidates, has barred many Ahmadinejad supporters, forcing him to pick younger political unknowns. They had no public link to Ahmadinejads camp, but the Council was wise enough to spot them and around 45 percent of his supporters have been disqualified, said one official involved in the multilayered vetting process. Posted by: tipper 2012-02-17 |
| http://www.rantburg.com/poparticle.php?ID=339256 |