TEHRAN, Iran 

With the participation rate in Iran's June 28 presidential election expected to determine its outcome, the turnout in recent years has remained around 40%.

Looking at recent election participation rates in Iran, a decline can be observed.

This situation stems from socio-economic problems in the country as well as boycott calls against the Guardian Council's refusal to allow certain important figures who are supported by a significant portion of the population to run as candidates.

Anadolu has compiled the election participation rates since the 1979 revolution in Iran, where public interest in elections has waned in recent years.

The first presidential election after the 1979 revolution was held on Jan. 25, 1980. Abolhassan Banisadr won with around 75% of the vote. The participation rate was 67.4%, with about 14 million voters casting their ballots.

After Banisadr was impeached by parliament on June 21, 1981 for incompetence and then removed from office by Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini on June 22, presidential elections were moved up to July 24, 1981. Former Prime Minister Mohammad Ali Rajai won with a participation rate of 64.2%.

New election held after President Rajai killed in terrorist attack

Following President Rajai's assassination in a terrorist attack, new presidential elections were held on Oct. 2, 1981. Ali Khamenei won with a turnout of 74.2%.

The elections held on Aug. 16, 1985 were overshadowed by boycott calls due to the Guardian Council's refusal to allow some candidates to run, including former prime minister and pro-democracy leader of the Nehzat-e Azadi-yi Iran (Iran Freedom Movement party), Mehdi Bazargan.

In the election contested by three founders of the Islamic Republic Party, formed in 1979 to help Ayatollah Khomeini establish theocracy in the country, the current leader, Ayatollah Khamenei, won with 85% of the vote. The participation rate was 54.8% as 14 million of the 26 million eligible voters cast their ballots.

In the presidential election held on July 28, 1989, the Guardian Council vetoed Ibrahim Yazdi, the candidate supported by the Iran Freedom Movement. The election, contested by one of the founders of the revolution, Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, and independent candidate Abbas Sheibani was won by Rafsanjani with 94% of the vote. The participation rate in this election was 54.6%.

In the June 11, 1993, presidential elections, Rafsanjani was re-elected for a second term against conservative politician Ahmad Tavakoli with 64% of the vote, and the participation rate fell to 50.6%.

The May 23, 1997, presidential elections resulted in a surprise victory for reformist cleric Muhammad Khatami.

Khatami won against the then-Parliament Speaker and conservative candidate Ali Akbar Nategh-Nouri, with 29 million out of 36 million registered voters casting their ballots, marking a participation rate of 79.9%.

The participation rate fell to 66.7% in Khatami's re-election on June 8, 2001.

In the June 17, 2005, presidential elections, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad won against Rafsanjani in the second round, with a participation rate of 66.6% in the first round and 59.8% in the second round.

Highest participation rate in country’s history

The June 12, 2009, presidential elections in Iran, which saw many protest demonstrations resulting in casualties due to objections, recorded the highest participation rate in the country's history. The election, marked by debates on state television, a heated campaign process and public excitement, saw Ahmadinejad winning with 63% of the vote against his rival, former Prime Minister Mir Hossein Mousavi. The participation rate was 85.2% as 39 million out of 46 million voters cast their ballots.

The June 14, 2013 presidential elections also saw significant competition. The conservative candidates Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf and Saeed Jalili faced the moderate conservative candidate supported by the reformists, Hassan Rouhani. Rouhani won the election with 50% of the vote in the first round, and the participation rate was 72.8%.

In the May 19, 2017, elections, Rouhani won re-election against the then-Judiciary Chief Ebrahim Raisi with 57% of the vote, and the participation rate was 73.3%, close to the previous election's rate.

Lowest participation rate in presidential elections

The June 18, 2021, elections were marked by the Guardian Council's veto of several key figures, including then-First Vice President Eshaq Jahangiri, former President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and then-Parliament Speaker Ali Larijani. Reformist groups announced that they would not participate if their candidates were vetoed, leading to boycott debates.

Raisi, who died in a helicopter crash on May 19 this year, won the election with 17.8 million out of 28.6 million votes, becoming Iran's 13th president. The participation rate of 48.8% was the lowest in the country’s history.

In the general elections held on March 1, the participation rate fell to 41%.

The participation rate in the presidential election to be held on June 28 in Iran is eagerly anticipated.

A survey conducted by the Iranian Students Polling Agency (ISPA) on June 9-10 with 3,906 people across the country provides some clues on this issue.

In the face-to-ace survey with voters by ISPA, 44.4% of the respondents said they would definitely participate in the June 28 elections and 7.3% said they would likely participate.

Among the respondents, 28.7% said they would not participate in the election under any circumstances while 14.9% said they had not yet decided whether to participate.

Additionally, 4.7% of the respondents said there was a low possibility that they would participate in the election.