Iran will stage presidential elections will be held on May 29 next year, press reports said Sunday, quoting the interior ministry.
The reports said Deputy Interior Minister Mostafa Tajzadeh had sent the decision for approval to Iran's powerful conservative-led Guardians Council, which supervises elections.
Reformist President Mohammad Khatami was elected on May 23, 1997 with nearly 70 percent of the vote, including heavy support from women and young people.
Khatami announced his decision to run for a second term earlier this year, but the press in recent days has been rife with reports of a behind-the-scenes political campaign aimed at pushing Khatami aside in the run-up to the 2001 polls.
Last week, Iran's deputy speaker of parliament Behzad Nabavi said Khatami might reconsider his decision to run for a second term.
"We are hopeful, but the president has not shown much enthusiasm" for a second term, Nabavi said, adding that he thought Khatami felt "further obstacles" would again be placed in the path of his reform program.
Under Iranian law, a head of state can only serve two successive terms – TEHRAN (AFP)
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