TEHRAN - Interior Minister Abdolreza Rahmani Fazli said on Friday that the number of people who have registered for the February parliamentary election has increased by 65% in comparison to the previous election in 2011.

Interior Ministry spokesman Hossein Ali Amiri announced that until 21:00 11,536 people had signed up for the election. However Amiri said registration was continuing at the Interior Ministry election headquarte4rs and 207 districts across the country.

The signup was extended following requests by related governors or governors-general, Amiri said, adding the signup will be automatically stopped by 24:00.

Talking in a press conference at the Interior Ministry, Rahmani Fazli said about 30 candidates will compete for each seat at the parliament.

He added that 801 candidates had also signed up for the Assembly of Experts election, showing ten people will compete for a seat in the Assembly of Experts.

Fazli also said that the women’s registration at the elections has increased by 11 percent.

Parliamentary and Assembly of Experts elections are scheduled to be held on February 26, 2016.

Elsewhere, the minister said that the Guardian Council will start studying the candidates’ competency from December 27 until January 25.

He also urged the country’s political parties to avoid disappointing the people and spoiling the election atmosphere.

Following a statement by the Guardian Council chief Ayatollah Ahmad Janati who told worshippers in Tehran on Friday that the increase in number of candidates is questionable the interior minister said he had “no worry” about the rise in number of candidates. However, he suggested that if anybody thinks that there is a “hidden” purpose behind the increase he can inform bodies such as the Intelligence Ministry.

NA/PA