Khamenei: The competition is over, let's be friends; IRGC, Jalili, and Ghalibaf have become 'friends' with Behdarifard

Ali Khamenei, the leader of the Islamic Republic of Iran, on Saturday, July 6, called for replacing 'competitive behaviors' with 'norms of friendship' in a message following the announcement of Masoud Behdarifard's victory in the government vote to determine the successor to Ebrahim Raisi. Khamenei, who had previously expressed dissatisfaction with the low participation rate in the first round of elections under his control, claimed in this message that a total of 55 million votes had been cast in two rounds, without mentioning the participation rate in the second round. The figures announced by officials and institutions of the Islamic Republic have always been met with skepticism by experts and analysts, and evidence from citizens and reports indicate very low public participation in the voting. IRGC Commander Hossein Salami described the people's presence in the elections to determine Raisi's successor as a 'resounding response' to Khamenei and announced the IRGC's readiness to cooperate with him 'in line with Khamenei's macro policies.' Saeed Jalili, another government-approved candidate for Raisi's succession, claimed in a statement, ignoring the widespread boycott of the elections by the people and the condition for candidates to pass through the Guardian Council filter composed of Khamenei's appointees, that Behdarifard was elected in a 'serious competition.' Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf, the Speaker of the Islamic Consultative Assembly and another Khamenei-approved candidate, acknowledged in his congratulatory message to Behdarifard the 'concern' of Islamic Republic officials over the decrease in participation in these elections. Following the announcement of Masoud Behdarifard as the ninth president of the Islamic Republic, a spokesperson for the U.S. State Department stated that 'elections in Iran are neither free nor fair,' and 'as a result, a significant number of Iranians decided not to participate at all.' The spokesperson also mentioned that the recent voting would not significantly impact Washington's approach towards Tehran, and U.S. concerns about the Iranian government's behavior would remain unchanged. Meanwhile, users on social media reacted widely to the announcement of Behdarifard's victory among the government-approved candidates, with some referring to the low participation rate and calling him the most illegitimate president in the history of the Islamic Republic. The Islamic Republic's Ministry of Interior announced a few hours after the end of the government voting to determine the fourteenth president of the Islamic Republic that Masoud Behdarifard was the replacement for Ebrahim Raisi and the ninth 'President of the Islamic Republic.' The ministry's 'election' headquarters claimed early on Saturday, July 6, that it had counted 30,530,175 votes, with Masoud Behdarifard receiving 16,384,403 votes and Saeed Jalili obtaining 13,538,179 votes. This claim of nearly 50% participation comes while numerous citizen-journalists' observations from Iran and other parts of the world indicate low participation and empty polling stations, along with widespread boycotting of this round of voting. The low participation in the government elections was discussed with Kazem Alamdari, Reza Arab, and Mojtaba Hashemi. Users report on the 'stagnation of the election circus'; voting by Sadegh Zibakalam became controversial. The announcement of Behdarifard as the 'President of the Islamic Republic' by the government; citizens speak of low participation. Hossein Ronaghi reacted to the government elections on July 5: 'The second 'no' was much louder.' Protests by Iranians abroad coincided with the second round of voting to determine Raisi's successor. Internet disruptions and empty polling stations were reported during the second round of government voting for Raisi's succession.