The preliminary results of the presidential elections in Iran, today Saturday, showed the reformist candidate Masoud Bazgashiyan leading over his conservative rival Saeed Jalili, in an election taking place at a critical time for the region. So who are Bazgashiyan and Jalili, the candidates for the presidency in Iran?
**Masoud Bazgashiyan**
- Born in September 1954 in Mahabad, to an Azerbaijani Iranian father and a Kurdish Iranian mother.
- He is a heart surgeon, an academic member at Tabriz University of Medical Sciences, and an Iranian reformist politician currently representing Tabriz, Oskoo, and Azarshahr in the Iranian Parliament, holding the position of First Deputy Speaker of the House since May 29, 2016.
- Bazgashiyan's political journey began when he joined Mohammad Khatami's administration as Deputy Minister of Health in 1997, later serving as Minister of Health in Iran from 2001 to 2005.
- He ran in the 2013 presidential elections but withdrew, and he also ran in the 2021 elections but was denied participation.
- Known for his strong support of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard, he is a Quran teacher and a reader of Nahj al-Balaghah, an active member of the Iranian-Turkish Friendship Association.
- Bazgashiyan lost his wife and one child in a car accident in 1993 and raised his three children alone without remarrying.
**Saeed Jalili**
- Born in Mashhad in September 1965, he is a conservative Iranian politician and diplomat.
- He served as the Secretary of the Supreme National Security Council from 2007 to 2013. He is currently a member of the Expediency Discernment Council and is considered a prominent negotiator regarding the Iranian nuclear file.
- Jalili previously held the position of Deputy Foreign Minister for European and American Affairs, having started his work at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in 1989.
- He ran in the 2013 presidential elections, finishing third, and also ran in the 2021 elections but withdrew in favor of Ebrahim Raisi before the elections.
- Known as the "living martyr" due to injuries sustained while serving in the Revolutionary Guard during the Iran-Iraq War, he holds a PhD in political science, teaches "Prophetic Diplomacy" at Imam Sadiq University, and is fluent in Arabic and English in addition to Persian. He is regarded as one of the 500 most influential figures in the Islamic world.
- While media outlets have discussed his closeness to Mojtaba Khamenei, Jalili is described as a tough negotiator who "strongly believes in Iran's nuclear program and its sovereign rights, and is not one to make major concessions."
- He has been married to physician Fatemeh Sajadi since 1992, and they have one son.
