TEHRAN — Former Defense Minister Hossein Dehghan has announced that he’s running for the 2021 presidential election.

“I consider myself a completely patriotic, revolutionary element and a person who has striven so far to offer my own intellectual, executive and mental capacity to advance the goals and interests of the system and the Revolution,” Dehghan said, ISNA reported on Tuesday.

He also said he is not aligned to any political faction, including the reformist and principlist camps.

Dehghan is a former Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRCG) officer who served in the IRGC Air Force. He served as defense minister from 2013–2017 in the Hassan Rouhani administration.

The presidential election is scheduled to be held in Iran on June 18, 2021. It will be the thirteenth presidential election in Iran since the 1979 Islamic Revolution.

In remarks in August, Jamal Orf, the deputy interior minister in charge of election headquarters, said with the Guardian Council’s approval June 18 was set for holding presidential, council and midterm parliamentary and Assembly of Experts elections.

Candidates hoping to run in the next elections are to apply in early April for approval. The final list is to be announced by the Guardian Council in early June.

Under Iran’s law, an incumbent president cannot run for a third term if he has already served for two consecutive terms. Rouhani was first elected in 2013 and reelected four years later.

So far, Foreign Minister Zarif has categorically rejected presidential candidacy, saying he is not the right person for the job. Recently, it was also reported that Jahangiri, who currently serves as first vice president, has refused to accept candidacy. 

MH/PA