TEHRAN, Jun. 28 (MNA) – Iranians inside and outside the country headed to polling stations in large numbers to elect a new president to replace martyr President Ebrahim Raeisi on Friday.

The polls closed across Iran at 12:00 a.m. local time on Saturday (20:30 GMT on Friday), ending a 16-hour-long voting process.

The voting had begun across 58,000 stations inside the country at 08:00 a.m. local time.

The process was initially scheduled to last for 10 hours, but was extended thrice owing to lively and passionate popular participation in the electoral procedure.

With the end of the official voting procedure, the polling stations stopped receiving any new voters, and sufficed to serving those, who had already turned up at the stations to cast their ballots.

Simultaneously with the electoral procedure inside the country, as many as 314 polling stations have been serving Iranian expatriates throughout more than 100 foreign countries.

The election was called after President Ebrahim Raeisi was martyred along with seven others on May 19, when the helicopter carrying them crashed in northwestern Iran.

Following Raeisi’s martyrdom, Vice President Mohammad Mokhber was tasked with running the country’s executive affairs.

More than 61 million Iranians have been eligible to vote in the election, contested by Saeed Jalili, a former lead nuclear negotiator, Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf, Iranian Parliament speaker, Mostafa Pourmohammadi, former interior minister, and Masoud Pezeshkian, former health minister.

Iran’s Election Office, meanwhile, announced in a statement that the candidates’ official representatives were allowed to attend the polling stations and remain there until the conclusion of the vote counting process, while refraining from interference in underway administrative and supervisory procedures.

Voting hours extended for third time until midnight:

Amid people's massive voter turnout, the elections headquarters extended the voting hours until 12 PM or midnight.

The elections headquarters spokesman Mohsen Eslami said in a statement to the media that after the 12 PM, the polling stations will close and there will not any other extensions. He said that the people who have not been able to vote but standing in line will be directed to inside the polling stations to cast their ballots but no other people will be able to enter those stations after 12 PM o'clock.

He said that right after 12, counting the votes will begin.

Voting hours receive second extension amid robust turnout:

The voting time in Iran's presidential election has received a second extension amid the high turnout of Iranians across the country from 8 pm to 10 PM Tehran Local Time.

Iranian in Bosnia vote in elections:

Voting time extended from 6 to 8 PM:

The secretary and spokesperson for the Election Headquarters, Mohsen Eslami said that voting time was extended for two hours from 6 to 8 PM Tehran Local Time.

Voting for Iran's presidential election in UK underway:

Voting for the 14th presidential election in England continues as anti-Revolution elements have made attempts to disrupt the process of the election.

Hamid Nouri says next president should continue path of Martyr Raeisi:

Hamid Nouri, a former Iranian judiciary official who was recently released from prison in Sweden, has said that the next Iranian president should continue the path of martyr president Ebrahim Raeisi. 

Speaking to reporters after he cast his ballot along with his family in Tehran, Nouri called for mass participation of people in the voting.

520 foreign journalists cover Iran's elections:

As many as 520 foreign reporters are covering the ongoing presidential elections in Iran, an Iranian official with the culture ministry said.

Iranian nationals in Russia go to the polls to vote in the 14th presidential election: 

Iran police chief says no security incident during voting process so far:

The commander-in-chief of Law Enforcement Command (Police) said on Friday afternoon that no security incident has taken place during the voting process across Iran, stressing that the election process was underway in full security.

Iranians in Brunei cast ballots at embassy 

Iranian nationals residing in Brunei Darussalam went to the Embassy of the Islamic Republic of Iran in the capital to vote in the 14th presidential election.

Silvia Guerra, a Spanish journalist covers Iran's elections 

Iranians residing in Bonn, Germany cast their ballots:

Iranian nationals residing in Germany went to a polling station in the city of Bonn in Germany to vote on Friday morning.

 Iranian citizens in Azerbaijan cast their ballots in the 14th presidential election:

Voting underway in 95 countries:

The spokesman of the Guardian Council Hadi Tahan Nazif said after casting his vote in Tehran that polling stations have been set up in as many as 95 countries across the globe.

Iranians in the Bangladeshi capital cast their votes:

Iranian citizens in Dhaka, Bangladesh went to the polls to vote in Iran's 14th presidential election.  

Larijani casts his ballot in Mazandaran:

Former long-serving speaker of the parliament Ali Larijani went to a polling station in northern Province of Mazandaran on Friday to cast his vote. 

Iranians in Dubai go to polls:

Iranians in Istanbul go to polls:

Iranian expats in Iraq cast their ballots:

Ayatollah Amoli Larijani casts his vote:

Ayatollah Sadeq Amoli Larijani the head of the Expediency Council cast his vote at a polling station at the Guardian Council compound in downtown Tehran.

Former president Khatami casts his vote:

The former President Seyyed Mohammad Khatami, 80-year-old, cast his ballot at a polling station in Hosseiniyeh Ershad early on Friday. 

People in Kerman go to polls:

People in the southeastern city of Kerman were queing  at a polling station set up next to the grave of martyr General Ghassem Soleimani, the former IRGC Quds Force, to casts their ballots.

Zakani casts his vote:

Alireza Zakani, the mayor of Tehran who withdrew from the presidential race yesterday cast his ballot at a polling station in Tehran on Friday morning.

Presidential candidate Ghalibaf casts his ballot:

The current speaker of the parliament Mohammad Bagheri Ghalibaf who is running in the presidential contests cast his ballot at a polling station at Shah Abdol-Azim Hasani Shrine in the south of Tehran.

Interim President Mohammad Mokhber casts his ballot:

Mohammad Mokhbar, interim president of the country, cast his vote early on Friday at a polling station at the Ministry of Interior and visited the country's election headquarters.

Iran’s interim president, Mohammad Mokhber says that the voting process in Iran does not permit any violations or mistakes.

KI