Polling extended after record turn out in Iranian election
Iranians go to polls to elect new president in election being closely watched by western observers
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Friday, 12, Jun 2009 05:57
Polling has been extended for two hours after a record turnout in Iran's presidential election today.
The election follows a bitter campaign which saw the incumbent Mahmoud Ahmadinejad accuse his rivals of 'Nazi tactics'.
Mr Ahmadinejad is bidding for a second four-year term as president of the Islamic Republic, but faces stiff competition from reformist Mir Hossein Mousavi.
After spending 20 years in the political wilderness when the prime ministerial post he held was abolished in 1989, Mr Mousavi returned to challenge Mr Ahmadinejad, accusing him of isolating Iran by repeated attacks upon the United States.
During the election campaign, which officially ended on Wednesday, Mr Ahmadinejad, who has angered western governments over his refusal to suspend uranium enrichment and repeated threats towards Israel, accused his rival of using "Zionist entities" [Israeli companies] to discredit his administration.
Mr Mousavi, a trained architect and painter, has frequently attacked the president's economic record, and called for more rights for women.
The bitter trade of attacks culminated on Wednesday when in a parting shot Mr Ahmadinejad said the use of graphs and documents to undermine his record was "a return to Hitler's methods, to repeat lies and accusations until everyone believes those lies".
Mr Ahmadinejad's rivals, which also include Mohsen Razai and Mehdi Karroubi, are said to be furious at the extent of the accusation, which came too late in the campaign season for them to respond.
Forty-eight million Iranians are eligible to vote in the elections, which are critical to determining Tehran's role on the world stage.
Since the Islamic Revolution of 1979 Iran's head of state has been a supreme leader, currently Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, but still elects a president and parliament every four years.