Iran opens final registration for candidates in next year’s parliament election

TEHRAN, Iran (AP) — Iran’s state media reports that the final phase of registration for candidates who want to run in Iran’s parliamentary election next year has opened. Nearly 49,000 people filed initial paperwork in August seeking to run for the 290-seat parliament in the election, set for March 1, 2023. The elections will be the first since nationwide protests rocked the country last year. That is a record number and more than three times the 16,000 registrations filed in the last election in 2020, when voter turnout was its lowest since 1979. Just over 42% of eligible voters cast ballots at the time. Candidates have a week to finalize their profiles online. Each hopeful will have to be approved by the Guardian Council, a 12-member clerical body.