Jemna's Request from Rouhani: Refrain from Entering Proven Wrong Solutions

The Popular Front of Islamic Revolutionary Forces, known as Jemna, a conservative coalition formed to select a single candidate for the 2017 presidential elections, congratulated Hassan Rouhani on his victory but simultaneously urged him to "refrain from entering proven wrong solutions." In its statement released on Sunday, May 21, Jemna asked Rouhani to "take effective and urgent actions to solve the economic and social problems of the people by relying on domestic capabilities and the immense potential of the country's youth, and to avoid entering proven wrong solutions such as trusting the enemies of the nation and relying on foreigners." The Popular Front of Islamic Revolutionary Forces also warned Rouhani that if he "forgets the main priorities of the nation or seeks to waste the four-year opportunity for service by adopting wrong strategies or getting involved in superficial and marginal matters," it will act as a "critic and demand-maker" to steer the government towards "efficiency and solving the real problems of the nation." Jemna also considered the approximately 16 million votes for Ibrahim Raisi, its candidate, as indicative of "a serious and undeniable demand for changing the current situation in favor of the people and the underprivileged," stating: "This is something that governments and those in power and wealth cannot ignore, and undoubtedly, they will bow to it." The statement from Jemna comes as Ibrahim Raisi, the candidate supported by this coalition, previously refrained from congratulating Rouhani in his post-election statement and emphasized the "pursuit of clear violations" in the election process. Raisi received 15 million 786 thousand votes, accounting for 38.5 percent of the presidential election votes, and was defeated by Rouhani, who garnered over 23 million votes. Hours before Raisi's statement was released, Rouhani, the election winner, stated that participants in the May 29 elections said no to those who wanted to take the country back to the past. Rouhani described his election as a "victory of peace and reconciliation over tension and violence" and stated, "Today the world knows that Iran has chosen a path away from violence." He also characterized his presidential victory as a "victory of peace and reconciliation over tension and violence," and "a victory of national unity and cohesion over division and fragmentation."