Hardliners in Iran’s presidential race are jostling to become their faction’s unity candidate to counter the surprise reformist contender, as they face pressure from within their own camp for some to quit the race.
A week before voting begins, regime-approved conservatives are campaigning fiercely, including in the holy city of Mashhad, a conservative bastion and the hometown of the two most high-profile hardline candidates.
The possibility of pro-reform Iranians turning out to vote has heightened infighting among the hardline group — made up of social conservatives opposed to a rapprochement with the US — over how to consolidate their own vote share ahead of the election’s first round on June 28.