POLITICS-IRAN: Ahmadinejad Faces Stormy New Parliament

IPS
Analysis by Kimia Sanati

TEHRAN, Apr 7 (IPS) - President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad can expect considerable opposition in the newly elected parliament -- set to be installed on May 27 -- that has a considerable number of representatives from rival hardliners, conservatives and a stronger reformist minority.

Hardliners and conservatives critical of Ahmadinejad’s economic and foreign policies are likely to unite with the reformists to exercise more control on the government, analysts in Tehran say.

The hardliners and conservatives’ camp, referred to as ‘principlists’, broke into two main coalitions in the Mar. 14 parliamentary elections. The schism occurred just days before the vote when the pro-government group refused to include some of the candidates proposed by other hardliner and conservative groups in the coalition’s joint list for the 30 seats of Tehran.

The pro-Ahmadinejad coalition, known as the United Front of Principlists and which includes a nucleus group of hardcore Ahmadinejad men, claims to have won the highest number of 220 seats, decided in the first round of elections nationwide.

Sixty-eight more seats where none of the candidates has been able to acquire a minimum of 25 percent of the total votes will be decided later in run-off elections.

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