Rafsanjani brother registers to contest elections

A brother of late President Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani has registered to run in the upcoming Iranian presidential elections in May. Associated Press journalists watched as Mohammed Hashemi Rafsanjani, 75, registered Saturday — the last day of the registration period.
Mohammed Hashemi Rafsanjani was head of Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB) for 10 years until 1994. He was also a member of the Expediency Council, an administrative assembly that plays an advisory role to Iran’s Supreme Leader, or head of state.
The family of late Ayatollah Hashemi Rafsanjani is supporting incumbent President Hassan Rouhani, who is running for a second term.
The upcoming vote will be seen, among other things, as a referendum on the 2015 nuclear agreement with world powers.
Earlier, former President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad had surprised Iran’s clerical establishment by registering for the election, defying the Islamic Republic’s Supreme Leader’s warning not to enter the race. Ahmadinejad has upset predictions before by stealing the show in 2005.

Source: Arab News