TEHRAN, Jul. 06 (MNA) – Iraqi president felicitated Masoud Pezeshkian on his victory in Iran’s presidential election runoff.

In his message, Abdul Latif Rashid congratulated the successful presidential election in Iran and election of Masoud Pezeshkian as the new president of the Islamic Republic of Iran and wished evermore success for him in his new post.

In his message, Latif expressed hope that his country is interested in strengthening bilateral relations between Tehran and Baghdad in line with securing interests of the two neighboring states.

Veteran parliamentarian Masoud Pezeshkian has won Iran's runoff presidential vote, the interior ministry says, bringing a conclusion to a tight race that saw voters swell polling stations on Friday.

Pezeshkian received more than 16 million votes against former nuclear negotiator Saeed Jalili with more than 13 million out of over 30 million votes cast, electoral authorities said.

"By gaining a majority of the votes cast on Friday, Pezeshkian has become Iran's next president," the interior ministry said.

The runoff on Friday followed a June 28 ballot in a snap election to find a successor to President Ebrahim Raeisi who lost his life with his foreign minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian and others in a helicopter crash in northwest Iran.

Pezeshkian originally ran against a field of five candidates last week, winning the largest number of votes but falling short of a majority which sent him and Jalili to a second round.  

MA/