Qalibaf stepped down in favor of Ebrahim Raisi
Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf, one of the three conservative candidates, withdrew from the presidential race and urged his supporters to vote for Ebrahim Raisi, who was trailing Raisi in recent polls.
Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf, one of the three conservative candidates for the presidential election, withdrew from the race on Monday afternoon (May 15), contrary to his previous statements, and announced that he would support Ebrahim Raisi, the other candidate of the "Popular Forces Front of the Islamic Revolution" (Jumna).
Qalibaf announced this decision after the meeting of the Jumna Central Council on Monday, May 15. Tasnim News Agency wrote: “In this meeting, considering the readiness of both candidates of the Revolutionary Front (Seyda Ebrahim Raisi and Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf) to step down in favor of another, Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf finally announced his withdrawal from the presidential race and emphasized that he will do all he can to ensure the victory of Seyda Ebrahim Raisi over the “inefficient and incompetent government.”
A member of Qalibaf's campaign told Tasnim News Agency: "He [Raisi] had generously announced his readiness to step down in Qalibaf's favor, but overall it was in his best interest for Mr. Qalibaf to step down. However, Mr. Qalibaf will not leave the stage, nor will his campaigns be closed. Rather, from this moment on, they will devote all their strength and energy to Seyyed Ebrahim Raisi's victory over the incompetent, inefficient, and aristocratic head of state."
In polls released in recent days, Qalibaf was ranked lower than Raisi. Qalibaf's decline was especially evident after the candidates' third televised debate on Friday (22 Adribehesht).
In a statement released immediately after withdrawing from the race, Qalibaf said that "despite having a precise and comprehensive plan to solve the country's problems," he had "made a fundamental and serious decision in order to unite the revolutionary front."
The mayor of Tehran continued his statement by writing: "I ask all my popular supporters across the country to devote all their capacity and support to the success of our esteemed brother, Hojjatoleslam Wal-Muslimeen Seyyed Ebrahim Raisi, and to the establishment of a government of work and dignity to serve the people."
Some Iranian media outlets reported on Monday morning (25 Aribehasht) an "electoral shock" in the fundamentalist camp, writing that the fundamentalists had almost reached an agreement that Qalibaf and Mirsalim would step down in favor of Raisi in the last two or three days.
Polls in the early days of the election campaign showed Qalibaf in second place after Hassan Rouhani, with Ebrahim Raisi in third place. However, Raisi's position gradually improved and he came close to Qalibaf's.
In addition to Raisi's improved position over Qalibaf in the polls, Qalibaf has failed to attract the favorable opinion of many fundamentalist figures and institutions in recent weeks, most of whom supported Ebrahim Raisi. Fundamentalist religious authorities and traditional fundamentalist institutions, such as the Clergy Association and the Teachers' Association of the Qom Seminary, have aligned themselves with Raisi.
The IPO poll, conducted one day after the last candidate debate, shows that Hassan Rouhani, with more than 53 percent of the vote, still maintains his distance from the two main rivals.
Source: DW
