Iran's new president may be a reformist, but change remains distant
Iran on Friday elected its first "reformist" president in 20 years, signaling many voters' rejection of hardline conservative policies amid low turnout of just 49%, according to official figures. Masoud Pezeshkian, a former health minister and member of parliament, was the most moderate of the candidates vying for the presidency after the sudden death of former President Ibrahim Raisi in a helicopter crash in May. Described as a "token reformist" and "second-tier candidate" by many analysts, the 69-year-old Pezeshkian was seen as having scant chance at the presidency as he lacked name recognition and was up against a highly conservative system. "The whole election process leading to Pezeshkian's victory now has indeed