Elections Begin Amid Calls for Boycott; Government Threats and Promises Intensified

The elections for the Islamic Consultative Assembly and the Assembly of Experts in Iran began on Friday morning, March 2, under the shadow of threats and promises from officials of the Islamic Republic. In contrast, numerous calls for a boycott have been issued by political and civil figures as well as organizations and parties inside and outside Iran in recent days. Before the elections, Ali Khamenei, the leader, and other political and military officials of the Islamic Republic repeatedly urged the Iranian people to go to the polls with varying tones of promises and threats. The leader of the Islamic Republic promised on December 23 that 'elections will bring about transformation.' He also stated on March 1: 'Casting a vote is an easy task that has significant results, so this opportunity should be utilized.' These statements come at a time when social media users and opponents of the Islamic Republic have repeatedly emphasized that the situation in Iran has not changed significantly, especially in the last three decades, following elections. Meanwhile, according to reports, before Friday, Islamic Republic officials resorted to actions such as granting four days of leave to soldiers, allowing voting with five forms of identification, threatening prisoners, warning teachers, and security measures against those who spoke of a boycott to secure more votes. Hashim Kargar, head of the Civil Registration Organization, stated on Thursday to the state news agency ISNA: 'In this election cycle and based on the new law, people can vote with five forms of identification: birth certificate, national ID card, military service completion card, driver's license, and passport.' This official added: 'Individuals who present documents other than the national ID card and birth certificate at the polling station will also be verified using the national population database and will then be able to vote.' The human rights organization 'Hengaw' reported that on the evening of Thursday, March 1, Kermollah Azizi, head of the Qazalhesar Prison in Karaj, along with many security forces, spoke among the prisoners, stating that participation in the parliamentary elections is 'mandatory' for all prisoners. He threatened that 'if anyone does not vote, they should expect consequences.' A similar threat was reported by Hengaw in Sanandaj prison, where officials threatened prisoners that if they did not participate in the elections on Friday, they would be deprived of their basic rights, including phone calls and in-person visits. This human rights organization noted that the Islamic Republic's education departments in Kurdistan cities warned teachers via phone that 'voting is mandatory; even if they vote against the regime, otherwise they will be fired.' Additionally, the Islamic Republic's state news agency reported that the police chief of West Azerbaijan announced on Thursday the arrest of 50 individuals managing social media pages, accusing them of spreading 'provocative content.' The call for public participation in the voting on Friday came at a time when 'Online Trust' reported on March 1 that 'given the economic and social discontent across the country and the way qualifications are assessed and the supervisory oversight is exercised, it seems that even some factions of the principlists have no hope for significant participation in the upcoming elections.' The website noted that 'the latest polls conducted by some official institutions confirm this theory,' adding: 'According to reports, in the latest poll by state media, nationwide participation is estimated at 35 percent.' The report indicated that 'the segment that may decide to participate on the final day is 11 percent, and participation in Tehran is estimated at 18 percent.' Meanwhile, 'ISPA,' the Iranian Student Polling Center, announced that based on the third poll conducted among over 5,100 individuals on March 7 and 8, '38.5 percent said they would definitely participate in the elections, 7.6 percent said they were likely to participate, 16 percent said they had not yet decided about participating, 32.6 percent stated they would not participate at all, and 5.4 percent said they were unlikely to participate.' The release of this poll contradicted Ali Khamenei's statement on Wednesday that 'signs of electoral enthusiasm are visible across the country in various places. The desire for elections and electoral enthusiasm is palpable.' In this regard, the head of the polling studies group at Gaman, announcing the results of a poll conducted on March 1, 1402, titled 'Iranian Participation in the Upcoming Elections,' stated that participation in the elections on March 2 is predicted to be between 25 to 30 percent nationwide. Ammar Maleki stated in an exclusive interview with VOA that the predicted electoral participation in Tehran is ultimately estimated at 11 percent, saying: 'The Gaman poll was conducted over 24 hours, and the results of this report are based on a balanced sample of over 28,000 respondents from within Iran and educated individuals over 19 years old, which is generalizable to the population.' According to the head of the polling studies group at Gaman, the results of this poll show that two days before the elections, about 74% do not intend to participate in the Islamic Consultative Assembly elections, and 75% also stated they would not participate in the Assembly of Experts elections. Additionally, the website 'Ensaf News' reported from the capital of Iran, asking 50 men and women about the elections on March 2. Eight of them emphasized voting, five were hesitant or said they would vote if they had time, but the others firmly stated they would not vote. Among them, a woman and her husband said: 'Woman: No, because of inflation, the work and social conditions are not good, why should I vote? Husband: No, I tell everyone I meet not to vote because it makes no difference.' According to Ensaf News, one man laughed when he heard the word election and said: 'Elections? Forget it!' In recent weeks and days, numerous calls for boycotting the elections have been issued. One of these calls comes from the Coordination Council of Iranian Teachers' Trade Unions, the largest independent trade union in Iran, which described the elections on Friday as a 'show.' In one of the latest calls, dozens of individuals, including those arrested in recent protests, stated in a declaration titled 'In the Name of Freedom': 'If we decide not to participate in the elections, it is not because we have turned our backs on democracy, but because our smallest demands remain unanswered, and if any change has occurred, it has only been in favor of a few who have played a role in suppressing our demands.' They stated: 'How can it be said that we have heard your voice while inflation continues to soar and unemployment is rampant?' In this declaration, referring to the fact that 'it is not enough to just make promises and not act,' they added: 'How can it be said that the treasury is empty and every day taxes and inflation are imposed on us, while massive embezzlements occur and nothing happens?' The signatories of the letter wrote: 'Our eyes see, and we hope that in the not-too-distant future, we will stand in an electoral queue where, in its time, prisons are empty of political prisoners, where elections are not in the interest of specific groups, and where our votes have an impact and yield results.' The declaration was signed by Arman Nourian, Hossein Janjani, Ehsan Naeimi, Eskandar Lotfi, Elham Rafiepour, Ameneh Rezaei, Amir Babazadeh, Anahita Babaei Zadeh, Iman Tanabandeh, Iman Khodari, Pedram Jamalzadeh, Parham Barati, Parvaneh Eftekhar, Pouran Nazemi, Pouya Vaez, Tina Tabatabai, Hesam Darvish, Hossein Yazdi, Hamid Mazraeh, Zahra Khandan, Sara Siyahpour, Saeed Molaei, Siamak Askari, Sina Fathi, Shabnam Kamali, Shervin Amini, Saba She’r Doost, Tanaz Kolahchian, Alireza Tavakoli, Fatima Zahraei, Fatemeh Amirloo, Farokhandeh Danesh, Fariba Jafari, Kaveh Rasouli, Maryam Shiri, Masoud Farhikhteh, Mehdi Malek, Mehdi Najafi, Mehrshad Barati, Mona Shakriz, Nima Abedini, and Yashar Panahi. Hossein Razagh, a political prisoner in Evin Prison, also wrote in a letter titled 'I Will Not Vote' describing the elections on March 2 as a circus: 'Now, for the sake of preparing for freedom, there is no virtue greater than boycotting before us, and every sane mind knows that moving towards the pretense of elections is ignorance towards oppression and crime, and complicity with the tyrant who has led the country into misery and buried the youth of the homeland.' According to the Telegram channel 'Kalameh,' Mr. Razagh emphasized that 'every moment of this regime's survival is equivalent to a year of harm to Iran, we do not vote so that those who remain standing by force of bayonets tremble like a reed for their survival.' Elections in the Islamic Republic of Iran are not 'free and fair.'