Iranian City and Village Councils elections, 2006
Encyclopedia
The Iranian City and Village Councils election of 2006 took place on December 15, 2006. People elected representatives for City and Village Councils
, who in their turn elected the mayors.
The elections happened on the same day as the election
for the Assembly of Experts
.
Tehran
's candidates, as the largest city in the country and the capital, included more famous candidates. These included former politicians Mohammad Ali Najafi
(former Vice President under Mohammad Khatami
and Minister of Education under Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani
), Ahmad Masjed-Jamei
(former Minister of Culture and Islamic Guidance under Khatami), Masoumeh Ebtekar
(former Vice President under Khatami and spokeswoman of Iranian students in Iran hostage crisis
); sportsmen Hadi Saei
(Taekwondo
athlete and gold medalist in 2004 Summer Olympics
), Rasoul Khadem
(wrestler and gold medalist in 1996 Summer Olympics
) and Alireza Dabir
(wrestler and gold medalist in 2000 Summer Olympics
); and even Parvin Ahmadinejad
, sister of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.
Also notable is that the reformist parties
reached a consensus to have a unified list of candidates for the election, contrary to the previous election where every reformist party had a separate list, some not even sharing a single candidate.
These fifteen candidates were later confirmed elected as the Tehran City councillors.
protested Ministry of Interior delays in announcing provisional results, and its failure to announce provisional results for two days after the end of the election. This contravened normal practice, where results were announced gradually as vote counting was under way. The candidates also claimed fraud in counting the votes, mentioning lost vote boxes and newly found boxes that reported zero votes for the reformist candidates.
City and Village Councils of Iran
City and Village Councils are local councils which are elected by public vote in all cities and villages throughout Iran....
, who in their turn elected the mayors.
The elections happened on the same day as the election
Iranian Assembly of Experts election, 2006
The Iranian Assembly of Experts election of 2006 was held on December 15, 2006. People elected representatives for the Assembly of Experts, the mujtahid that elect the Supreme Leader....
for the Assembly of Experts
Assembly of Experts
The Assembly of Experts of Iran , also translated as Council of Experts, is a deliberative body of 86 Mujtahids that is charged with electing and removing the Supreme Leader of Iran and supervising his activities.Members of the assembly are elected from a government-screened list of candidates by...
.
Candidates
Every city and village in the country elected representatives. Iran's 46.5 million eligible voters elected about 233,000 candidates for more than 113,000 city and rural council posts.Tehran
Tehran
Tehran , sometimes spelled Teheran, is the capital of Iran and Tehran Province. With an estimated population of 8,429,807; it is also Iran's largest urban area and city, one of the largest cities in Western Asia, and is the world's 19th largest city.In the 20th century, Tehran was subject to...
's candidates, as the largest city in the country and the capital, included more famous candidates. These included former politicians Mohammad Ali Najafi
Mohammad Ali Najafi
Mohammad Ali Najafi is an Iranian politician and university professor in mathematics. He was Minister of Science and Technology in the Cabinet of Mir-Hossein Mousavi and after that Minister of Education...
(former Vice President under Mohammad Khatami
Mohammad Khatami
Sayyid Mohammad Khātamī is an Iranian scholar, philosopher, Shiite theologian and Reformist politician. He served as the fifth President of Iran from August 2, 1997 to August 3, 2005. He also served as Iran's Minister of Culture in both the 1980s and 1990s...
and Minister of Education under Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani
Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani
Ayatollah Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani is an influential Iranian politician and writer, who was the fourth President of Iran. He was a member of the Assembly of Experts until his resignation in 2011...
), Ahmad Masjed-Jamei
Ahmad Masjed-Jamei
Ahmad Masjed-Jamei is an Iranian reformist politician, who served as Culture Minister under President Mohammad Khatami from 2000 to 2005, and was elected a Tehran City Councillor in 2006.-Culture Minister:...
(former Minister of Culture and Islamic Guidance under Khatami), Masoumeh Ebtekar
Masoumeh Ebtekar
Masoumeh Ebtekar is an Iranian scientist, journalist and politician. She is currently the director of Peace and Environment Center in Tehran.Ebtekar first achieved fame as the spokeswoman of the students who had occupied the US Embassy in 1979...
(former Vice President under Khatami and spokeswoman of Iranian students in Iran hostage crisis
Iran hostage crisis
The Iran hostage crisis was a diplomatic crisis between Iran and the United States where 52 Americans were held hostage for 444 days from November 4, 1979 to January 20, 1981, after a group of Islamist students and militants took over the American Embassy in Tehran in support of the Iranian...
); sportsmen Hadi Saei
Hadi Saei
Hadi Saei Bonehkohal is a former Iranian Azerbaijani Taekwondo athlete who became the most successful Iranian athlete in Olympic history after winning gold in the 2008 Summer Olympics. He competed in the Men's 68 kg at the 2004 Summer Olympics and won the gold medal...
(Taekwondo
Taekwondo
Taekwondo is a Korean martial art and the national sport of South Korea. In Korean, tae means "to strike or break with foot"; kwon means "to strike or break with fist"; and do means "way", "method", or "path"...
athlete and gold medalist in 2004 Summer Olympics
2004 Summer Olympics
The 2004 Summer Olympic Games, officially known as the Games of the XXVIII Olympiad, was a premier international multi-sport event held in Athens, Greece from August 13 to August 29, 2004 with the motto Welcome Home. 10,625 athletes competed, some 600 more than expected, accompanied by 5,501 team...
), Rasoul Khadem
Rasoul Khadem
Rasul Khadem Azghadi is an Iranian wrestler who has won a Bronze medal in the 1992 Summer Olympics and a gold medal in the 1996 Summer Olympics. He is also the 1994 and 1995 world champion and the 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995 and 1996 Asian champion...
(wrestler and gold medalist in 1996 Summer Olympics
Wrestling at the 1996 Summer Olympics
At the 1996 Summer Olympics, 2 different wrestling disciplines were contested: freestyle wrestling and Greco-Roman wrestling. The freestyle category was notable as it featured the gold medal performance of Kurt Angle, who later became a notable professional wrestler.-Freestyle:-Greco-Roman:-Medal...
) and Alireza Dabir
Alireza Dabir
Alireza Dabir is a champion freestyle wrestler from Iran. Dabir won a gold medal at the Olympic Games in Sydney in 2000, as well as the World Championship in 1998. He was runner-up in 1999, 2001, and 2002. In the Athens Olympics, Dabir lost his first two matches due to a severe shoulder...
(wrestler and gold medalist in 2000 Summer Olympics
2000 Summer Olympics
The Sydney 2000 Summer Olympic Games or the Millennium Games/Games of the New Millennium, officially known as the Games of the XXVII Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event which was celebrated between 15 September and 1 October 2000 in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia...
); and even Parvin Ahmadinejad
Parvin Ahmadinejad
Parvin Ahmadinejad is an Iranian politician. She is currently a member of City Council of Tehran and is sister of current President, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.-Sources:...
, sister of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.
Also notable is that the reformist parties
Iranian reformists
The Iranian reform movement , or the Reforms Front also known as 2nd of Khordad Front is a political movement by a group of political parties and organizations in Iran who supported Mohammad Khatami's plans to change the system to include more freedom and...
reached a consensus to have a unified list of candidates for the election, contrary to the previous election where every reformist party had a separate list, some not even sharing a single candidate.
Voting results
A general tabulation of all of the elections in various cities and villages is not available, but the results for Tehran City Council may be taken as broadly representative. Of 1,656,558 votes counted by 2006-12-21, the official results gave the following as the first fifteen candidates (that would be elected):| Rank | Name | Faction | Votes | Percentage |
| 1 | Mehdi Chamran Mehdi Chamran Mehdi Chamran is an Iranian politician and the Chairman of the City Council of Tehran since 2003. He received the most number of votes from the Tehrani electorate in both of the elections he was elected in, in 2003 and 2006.... |
Qalibaf | 603,766 | 36.45% |
| 2 | Morteza Talaei | Qalibaf | 539,761 | 32.58% |
| 3 | Rasoul Khadem Rasoul Khadem Rasul Khadem Azghadi is an Iranian wrestler who has won a Bronze medal in the 1992 Summer Olympics and a gold medal in the 1996 Summer Olympics. He is also the 1994 and 1995 world champion and the 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995 and 1996 Asian champion... |
Qalibaf | 427,097 | 25.78% |
| 4 | Abbas Sheibani | Qalibaf | 394,457 | 23.81% |
| 5 | Hadi Saei Hadi Saei Hadi Saei Bonehkohal is a former Iranian Azerbaijani Taekwondo athlete who became the most successful Iranian athlete in Olympic history after winning gold in the 2008 Summer Olympics. He competed in the Men's 68 kg at the 2004 Summer Olympics and won the gold medal... |
Reformist | 384,358 | 23.20% |
| 6 | Hamzeh Shakib | Qalibaf | 330,233 | 19.93% |
| 7 | Alireza Dabir Alireza Dabir Alireza Dabir is a champion freestyle wrestler from Iran. Dabir won a gold medal at the Olympic Games in Sydney in 2000, as well as the World Championship in 1998. He was runner-up in 1999, 2001, and 2002. In the Athens Olympics, Dabir lost his first two matches due to a severe shoulder... |
Qalibaf | 306,729 | 18.52% |
| 8 | Parvin Ahmadinejad Parvin Ahmadinejad Parvin Ahmadinejad is an Iranian politician. She is currently a member of City Council of Tehran and is sister of current President, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.-Sources:... |
Ahmadinejad | 242,501 | 14.64% |
| 9 | Masoumeh Ebtekar Masoumeh Ebtekar Masoumeh Ebtekar is an Iranian scientist, journalist and politician. She is currently the director of Peace and Environment Center in Tehran.Ebtekar first achieved fame as the spokeswoman of the students who had occupied the US Embassy in 1979... |
Reformist | 232,959 | 14.06% |
| 10 | Ahmad Masjed-Jamei Ahmad Masjed-Jamei Ahmad Masjed-Jamei is an Iranian reformist politician, who served as Culture Minister under President Mohammad Khatami from 2000 to 2005, and was elected a Tehran City Councillor in 2006.-Culture Minister:... |
Reformist | 216,015 | 13.04% |
| 11 | Mohammad Ali Najafi Mohammad Ali Najafi Mohammad Ali Najafi is an Iranian politician and university professor in mathematics. He was Minister of Science and Technology in the Cabinet of Mir-Hossein Mousavi and after that Minister of Education... |
Reformist | 202,700 | 12.24% |
| 12 | Masoume Abad | Qalibaf | 201,754 | 12.18% |
| 13 | Hassan Bayadi | Qalibaf | 200,397 | 12.10% |
| 14 | Khosrow Daneshjou | Ahmadinejad | 200,175 | 12.08% |
| 15 | Habib Kashani Habib Kashani Habib Kashani is an Iranian politician and businessman. He is a member of City Council of Tehran since 10 April 2003. He was the chairman of famous multisport club Persepolis Athletic and Cultural Club based in Tehran, Iran, between 1 June 2007 to 1 June 2008 and for a second term from 1 October... |
Qalibaf | 197,284 | 11.91% |
These fifteen candidates were later confirmed elected as the Tehran City councillors.
Other cities
Partial results about other cities indicate:- In Isfahan, Ahmadinejad's supporters won three out of 11 seats
- In TabrizTabrizTabriz is the fourth largest city and one of the historical capitals of Iran and the capital of East Azerbaijan Province. Situated at an altitude of 1,350 meters at the junction of the Quri River and Aji River, it was the second largest city in Iran until the late 1960s, one of its former...
, Ahmadinejad's supporters won four out of 16 seats - In QomQomQom is a city in Iran. It lies by road southwest of Tehran and is the capital of Qom Province. At the 2006 census, its population was 957,496, in 241,827 families. It is situated on the banks of the Qom River....
, Ahmadinejad's supporters won three out of 9 seats - In ShirazShirazShiraz may refer to:* Shiraz, Iran, a city in Iran* Shiraz County, an administrative subdivision of Iran* Vosketap, Armenia, formerly called ShirazPeople:* Hovhannes Shiraz, Armenian poet* Ara Shiraz, Armenian sculptor...
, Ahmadinejad's supporters won one out of 11 seats - In ArdabilArdabilArdabil is a historical city in north-western Iran. The name Ardabil probably comes from the Zoroastrian name of "Artavil" which means a holy place. Ardabil is the center of Ardabil Province. At the 2006 census, its population was 412,669, in 102,818 families...
, Ahmadinejad's supporters won one out of 9 seats
Controversy about the results
The reformist candidatesIranian reformists
The Iranian reform movement , or the Reforms Front also known as 2nd of Khordad Front is a political movement by a group of political parties and organizations in Iran who supported Mohammad Khatami's plans to change the system to include more freedom and...
protested Ministry of Interior delays in announcing provisional results, and its failure to announce provisional results for two days after the end of the election. This contravened normal practice, where results were announced gradually as vote counting was under way. The candidates also claimed fraud in counting the votes, mentioning lost vote boxes and newly found boxes that reported zero votes for the reformist candidates.