Signs of promise in the Islamic Republic, ahead of Friday's elections.
By Shervin Malekzadeh
The Atlantic - Jun 12 2013
Iranians return to the polls this Friday to elect a new president, and
this year's voter turnout drive by state media has been noticeably more
urgent than
in years past. Days begin and end with reminders on TV and radio
that voting is a national duty, that with each election the people of
Iran strike a blow
against the doshman, the enemy, by again showing the
Americans that Iranians remain committed to their revolution and to the
Islamic Republic. In
a campaign season marked by the expressed disinclination of many
Iranians to care about -- much less vote for -- the next president, the
regime has become
understandably anxious that citizens, especially the youth, will not
participate.
But a rally held Saturday by reformist candidate Hassan Rouhani at
Shahid Shiroodi, a sprawling sports complex, suggests that a shift in
the electorate's
mood is underway, or at least a moderate-sized swell, and the youth
are becoming more energized.
Flanked by banners of wrestling heroes and triumphs past and
present, they quickly filled the arena to capacity with some 5,000
people standing cheek to
jowl in the sweltering gymnasium, with many more waiting outside.
Many of the attendees arrived festooned in purple, the official color of
the Rouhani
campaign: Purple signs and polo shirts, purple ribbons wrapped around
wrists and fingers; in the women's section one lady stood wrapped in a
purple hijab.
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