Supporters of the Iranian cleric presidential candidate Ebrahim Raisi at a campaign rally.
Photographer: Majid Saeedi/Getty Images
The World Needs to Watch Iran’s Election
Hardliners blame President Rouhani for the nuclear deal and economic malaise. They want power back.
In Iran’s holiest city, it’s as if only one man was in the running to win next week’s presidential election.
The main squares and junctions of Mashhad, home to the country’s most important shrine, are covered in posters of cleric Ebrahim Raisi. In his black Shiite turban, he stares out onto wide boulevards and sidewalks as women pass in black chador cloaks.