End of Election Show Under the Shadow of 'Ambiguity' in Voting Process; Controversies Over Removal of ID Requirement

Hours after the conclusion of the Islamic Consultative Assembly and Assembly of Experts elections in Iran, new controversies have emerged on social media. Reports indicate that with the removal of the requirement to present a national ID for voting, many people's national IDs were registered in the voting system as voters. The newspaper 'Hamshahri,' affiliated with the Tehran municipality and a supporter of President Ebrahim Raisi's government, reported that the national IDs of over twenty-five million people were registered in the election system, thus announcing a participation rate of 25 million. In another report, it was stated that due to the elimination of the requirement to present an ID for voting and the lack of need for a stamp on the ID, in the elections on Friday, 86% of voters used their national ID, 11% used their ID card, 3% used a driver's license, and less than 1% used a passport and military service completion card. According to images published by official media of the Islamic Republic, the processes of identity verification and receipt of ballots were done manually. It is unclear how, given that officials have repeatedly stated that they lack the infrastructure for nationwide electronic voting registration, there is any guarantee that an individual with various identity documents could not vote multiple times at different polling stations or even in different districts. Social media users have deemed the statistics released as far from the truth, believing that the Islamic Republic is engaged in 'statistical manipulation' and has registered citizens' national IDs in the system for this purpose. In this context, several videos circulated on social media in the final hours of voting, indicating that the national IDs of some citizens were recorded in the system as having voted before they actually cast their ballots. As of the time of this report, officials had not provided a formal response to these electoral doubts. The lackluster election atmosphere was such that the newspaper 'Ham-Mihan' referred to it as the 'silent majority' on its front page, which reportedly led security agencies to force the newspaper to change its front-page headline from 'silent majority' to 'attendance and absence.' The change occurred just hours after its publication on social media. The images shared also reflect the public's grievances about statistical manipulation, with several users reporting that upon visiting polling stations, they found they had been registered as voters hours earlier. The Halosh news agency also reported that on the morning of Friday, March 2, 2023, residents of the village of Sitl in the Sarbuk district of Qasr Qand County prevented the entry and establishment of a ballot box in their village. According to this media outlet, after preventing the entry and establishment of the ballot box, to ensure that the number of registered votes for this village was not recorded as zero, the governor of Qasr Qand ordered that several votes be registered in the names of the villagers using their national IDs, and ballots were placed in the box. Despite minimal public participation in the elections and considering that Ali Khamenei in the not-so-distant past deemed a 40% participation rate in elections in some countries as 'a disgrace,' state media announced shortly after the voting deadline that public participation in the elections on March 2 exceeded 40%. Meanwhile, reports sent by Voice of America audiences and videos and images published by other Persian-language television networks abroad and on social media contradict the claims made by state media. Prior to the elections, two independent polling organizations abroad - Goman and Statics - estimated participation in the elections to be below 30%. The latest survey from the Goman Institute indicates a maximum participation rate of 30% in the elections. Abram Pili, the Deputy Special Representative of the U.S. Department of State for Iran, tweeted on March 2, 2023, about the elections in the Islamic Republic, stating: 'The Iranian regime seeks to use this election as a showcase of democracy, but has disqualified thousands of candidates. The people of Iran know well that this election, whatever the outcome, does not represent them, and we agree with them.' He reiterated the United States' commitment to stand with the people of Iran, stating: 'We will continue to expose regime officials involved in human rights violations that deny the fundamental freedoms of Iranians and will stand with the Iranian people in their struggle for a free and democratic future.' The Iranian Retirees Council stated: 'With the widespread boycott of the elections, the massive movement of 'Women, Life, Freedom' continues.' The display of 'democracy showcase' again; domestic media claimed over 40% participation in the elections. Some citizens told Voice of America: 'The elections are a show, and we will not participate.' Reactions to the elections; Prince Reza Pahlavi called the Islamic Republic's 'election circus' a 'great deception.' Scattered clashes and arrests occurred simultaneously with the elections; users reported 'empty polling stations.' The elections began under the shadow of boycott calls; government threats and promises increased.