Iran’s sole reformist candidate Aref quits presidential race

PanARMENIAN.Net - The sole reformist candidate in this week's Iranian presidential election, Mohammad Reza Aref, has dropped out of the race, his website says, according to BBC News.

Aref said the head of the reformist movement, former president Mohammad Khatami, had asked him to withdraw.

There have been recent calls for Aref to quit in favour of moderate candidate Hassan Rowhani.

Most of the six remaining candidates in the poll are conservatives close to Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

Conservative Gholam Ali Haddad Adel withdrew his name on Monday June 10, urging people to vote for a conservative candidate though he did not endorse any individual.

Seen as completely loyal to Ayatollah Khamenei, he had been trailing in the polls and his withdrawal is not expected to have much impact on the voting outcome.