Iran elections: The candidates vying to replace Ebrahim Raisi after his air crash death - including a one-legged 'living martyr', a terror chief's 'best friend' and the cleric who ordered mass executions

The citizens of Iran volition flock to the polls time to formed their ballot successful statesmanlike elections, with West-hating ultra-conservative candidates battling it retired against a reformer who is an advocator for women's rights - and wants to marque bully with the White House.

The hotly anticipated election follows weeks aft erstwhile person Ebrahim Raisi was killed successful a fiery clang erstwhile his chopper nosedived into a mountainside, and comes astatine a peculiarly tumultuous clip for the Islamic Republic.

Unlike Western counterparts, an Iranian president has constricted power implicit the authorities of his federation arsenic each policies indispensable align with the volition of Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, with whom the eventual power of the state rests.

But arsenic Tehran's main typical connected the satellite stage, the president is undoubtedly a important fig - peculiarly erstwhile Iran's arch-enemy Israel is astatine warfare with Hamas and Hezbollah, portion state Russia is waging warfare connected Western-backed Ukraine. 

The victor volition besides beryllium charged with improving Iran's economical woes - the suffering rial has mislaid immoderate 94% of its worth successful conscionable the past 10 years with inflation sitting astatine a brutal 40% successful the look of ongoing Western sanctions.  

Here, MailOnline breaks down the Iranian ballot, digs into the past of each campaigner and explains who is astir apt to emergence to power.

A bosom surgeon, a cleric and a peg-leg atomic negotiator locomotion into a cafe...

It sounds similar the commencement of the worst gag you've ever heard - but it is successful information an close statement of 3 of the 5 candidates moving to go president. 

The five-strong ballot - down from six aft 1 campaigner dropped retired precocious past nighttime - is made up of 1 astonishment reformist and 4 conservatives, each much hardline than the last.

This database is apt to declaration earlier the archetypal ballot is cast, with past telling america that respective candidates could good retreat moments earlier the predetermination to backmost a rival successful the hopes they volition gain a cushy promotion for doing so.

The predetermination is wide considered a two-horse contention betwixt a brace of blimpish candidates - but specified infighting could besides play into the hands of the sole pro-Western reformist who has condemned Iran's morality constabulary and unit against women. 

Saeed Jalili

Jalili, 58, is simply a ruthlessly anti-Western, ultra-conservative campaigner who is advocating for an adjacent much austere society.

Born connected September 6, 1965 successful Mashhad, helium was conscionable 15 erstwhile Saddam Hussein's Iraqi forces invaded Iran, and a young Jalili was keen to spell to war.

He is known arsenic the 'Living Martyr' - a rubric helium earned aft helium had his ft and portion of his limb blown disconnected successful the bloody Siege of Basra.

After the warfare ended successful 1988, helium launched a vocation successful politics, joining the overseas ministry and carving retired a vocation successful diplomacy that saw him uphold strict argumentation measures rooted successful Islamic values. 

He besides developed a peculiar disdain for the West and marked himself retired arsenic a staunch ideologue portion moving arsenic an advisor to the hardline president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad successful 2005. 

In the people of his duties arsenic statesmanlike aide, Jalili penned a immense missive addressed to the then-US president George W. Bush which was efficaciously an 18-page disapproval and disregard of the Western wide antiauthoritarian system.

He past went connected to pb Iran's atomic programme negotiations betwixt 2007 and 2013, and powerfully opposed the 2015 atomic woody with the United States and Western governments, which aimed to curb Tehran's atomic enactment successful instrumentality for sanctions relief.

He was selected by Ayatollah Khamenei arsenic 1 of his representatives successful Iran's Supreme National Security Council, and remains a trusted advisor to the Supreme Leader. 

Under Jalili, Iranian citizens tin expect to endure adjacent much restrictive policies and a crackdown connected the already constricted freedoms they bask - not to notation a doubling down connected Tehran's anti-Western rhetoric nether Raisi that is definite to pb to yet much sanctions and misery for the people. 

Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf

Qalibaf, 62, is Iran's talker of the parliament and different salient blimpish who is going toe-to-toe with Jalili. 

Born connected September 23, 1961 adjacent Jalili's location metropolis of Mashhad, Qalibaf has held a slew of apical roles successful the Islamic Republic including the Chief of Police, the commandant of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps' aerial force, and the Mayor of Tehran. 

But helium besides sports a atrocious grounds successful statesmanlike elections, having antecedently tally for bureau 3 times, emerging unsuccessful from each campaign. 

Qalibaf is besides a preferred campaigner of Ayatollah Khamenei, who personally appointed him arsenic caput of the Guards' aerial unit successful 1997 and subsequently the caput of the constabulary unit successful 2000. 

And helium was a adjacent person and confidant of the notorious Qasem Soleimani, the erstwhile caput of the IRCG's Quds unit who was designated a violent successful 2005 by the US - and was assassinated successful a drone onslaught extracurricular Baghdad airdrome successful 2020 connected the orders of Donald Trump. 

Qalibaf himself has been embroiled successful his just stock of controversy, having battled claims of embezzlement and engagement successful an intricate fraud strategy successful the country's capital.  

The talker is seen by Jalili's supporters arsenic being excessively soft. They criticise him for not being a strict adherent to Islamic values, and assertion helium would beryllium consenting to entertain negotiations with the West.

He is surely a much mean blimpish campaigner - but Iran's citizens tin hardly expect Qalibaf to usher successful a caller property of freedom.  

Massoud Pezeshkian

Pezeshkian, 69, is some the oldest campaigner and the sole reformist taking portion successful the statesmanlike race, and stands to payment from the bitter conflict betwixt Jalili and Qalibaf whose rivalry is dividing voters. 

An taste Azeri from Iran's West Azerbaijan province, helium is an outspoken bosom surgeon who has represented the northwestern metropolis of Tabriz successful parliament since 2008.

While Jalili was warring connected the frontlines of the Iran-Iraq war, Pezeshkian was redeeming the lives of stricken soldiers arsenic a medic, earlier going connected to go 1 of the country's starring surgeons and wellness curate successful the authorities of erstwhile reformist president Mohammad Khatami. 

Pezeshkian has attempted a tally astatine the presidency erstwhile earlier successful 2021 erstwhile Raisi was elected, but was disqualified aft Ayatollah Khamenei refused to let reformers and much mean candidates to basal for election.

His chances of winning are surely slimmer than the supra candidates, but helium has carved retired a groundswell of enactment among the youth, taste minorities and Iran's women.

As portion of his campaign, Pezeshkian criticised Raisi's authorities for its ruthless crackdown connected protesters who turned retired successful their droves aft the decease successful custody of Mahsa Amini pursuing her brutal apprehension and attraction astatine the hands of Iran's 'morality police'.

Pezeshkian said Raisi's authorities lacked transparency implicit the incidental and questioned the authoritative communicative surrounding her death, declaring that helium volition advocator against the usage of unit connected women who bash not deterioration a hijab. 

He is besides the lone pro-Western campaigner successful the race, and has openly stated his tendency to re-enter negotiations with Washington to onslaught up a caller atomic woody that would spot Iran curb its atomic ambitions successful instrumentality for sanctions relief.

In short, Pezeshkian is the lone campaigner who would apt bring astir meaningful alteration successful Iran. 

Mostafa Pourmohammadi

Pourmohammadi, 64, is the lone cleric successful Iran's statesmanlike elections and a seasoned person who has seemingly undergone a translation from spiritual ideologue to new-age moderate. 

He was calved connected December 23, 1959 successful the spiritual metropolis of Qom, and is simply a stalwart of Iran's judicial and information apparatus, holding assorted positions including Head of Foreign Intelligence, Interior Minister and Justice Minister. 

In caller times helium has revealed a large tilt distant from accepted blimpish values successful favour of much mean and successful immoderate cases reformist positions. 

He sensationally declared helium would disband Iran's infamous morality constabulary and has spoken retired against Tehran's banning of societal media - policies that Pezeshkian's supporters interest could pull the desperately needed reformist votes. 

Like Pezeshkian, Pourmohammadi has besides spoken of the necessity of re-engaging with the West to assistance Iran's suffering system and reconstruct mislaid freedoms to the public.

But this governmental translation belies a chequered past.

Alongside the erstwhile president Ebrahim Raisi, Pourmohammadi was a subordinate of the four-man 'death committee' - a committee of high-ranking judicial and information figures believed to person been integral successful ordering the execution and torture of thousands of governmental prisoners successful 1988 - peculiarly members of the People's Mujahedin of Iran (MEK).

The MEK was a governmental question that helped to overthrow the Shah of Iran successful the 1979 gyration but advocated for a antiauthoritarian strategy of governance.

Instead, Ruhollah Khomeini seized lifelong regularisation arsenic Iran's Supreme Leader and vested powerfulness successful the country's Islamic clerics.

Nine years later, helium gave an bid to his authorities - including Pourmohammadi - to behaviour the ruthless run of executions and torture to expunge his detractors. 

Alireza Zakani

Zakani, 58, is an ultraconservative who has served arsenic Tehran's politician since August 2021.

Born successful the superior connected April 2, 1965, helium excessively is simply a seasoned of the Iran-Iraq war, and was a campaigner successful the 2021 statesmanlike predetermination earlier withdrawing to enactment Raisi. 

Like Jalili, helium is simply a staunch professional of the 2015 atomic deal, but is consenting to prosecute a much diplomatic track, claiming helium would beryllium capable to alleviate the brutal economical sanctions to which Iran is taxable via shrewd negotiations with Western governments.

He has taken what could beryllium called somewhat of a populist attack to his statesmanlike campaign, declaring that helium would usher successful escaped healthcare for the old, stimulation payments to the mediocre and a raft of economical policies that would instrumentality Iran's currency, the rial, to prominence.

But helium is lagging acold down the different candidates and is improbable to triumph immoderate meaningful percent of votes, with galore expecting him to driblet retired of the contention successful favour of Jalili oregon Qalibaf. 

Until past nighttime determination was a sixth campaigner - the Amir-Hossein Ghazizadeh-Hashemi - but helium withdrew from the race and urged different candidates to bash the aforesaid 'so that the beforehand of the gyration volition beryllium strengthened'.

He has not yet said whether helium volition endorse 1 of the different candidates, but again would apt enactment up down Jalili fixed his ultraconservative stance.