Former president Mohammad Khatami has called for a coalition of the two reformist presidential candidates, saying such a collaboration would exemplify “putting principle ahead of individual issues” and lift society’s spirits.
On Saturday, the former reformist president told a gathering of reformists that they are left with very few options in this election and must make the best of what they have.
The top reformist candidate, Ayatollah Hashemi Rafsanjani, was disqualified by the Guardian Council; among the eight approved candidates, Hassan Rohani and Mohammadreza Aref are considered moderate reformists.
Khatami called on reformist supporters to enter the political arena and take pragmatic steps as the presidential election approaches.
While some reformists have decided to endorse reformist candidates, other are still considering a boycott of the election in response to the Guardian Council’s filtering of their popular candidates.
