Reports from Iran indicate that a wide range of reformist groups have announced their support for Hassan Rohani.
The Islamic Iran Participation Front and the Association of Combatant Clerics as well as top government critics such as Ahmad Montazeri and Ali Motahari have lent their support to the Hassan Rohani campaign.
Meanwhile, former presidents Mohammad Khatami and Ayatollah Hashemi Rafsanjani have also endorsed Rohani as the chief candidate for the reformist camp.
The Coordination Council for the Reformist Front confirmed its support for Rohani in an official statement that says the coming election “could be a new beginning for the social and political movement of Iranians.”
The Islamic Iran Participation Front, a reformist group that was banned following the 2009 election protests, issued a statement saying it will support “the wisdom of Khatami and Hashemi in the hope that the struggles to save the country will bear fruit.”
The Society of Qom Seminarians and Researchers is another reformist group endorsing Rohani, while the daughter of the late leader of the Islamic Republic, Ayatollah Khomeini, also announced her support for the last reformist candidate.
Iranian reformists and government critics have been hesitant in joining the election while the reformist candidates from the 2009 election remain under house arrest and the political atmosphere of the country has stifled activists through widespread arrests and pressure on any form of dissent.
