The low-profile moderate Masoud Pezeshkian, who has pledged to open Iran to the world and deliver freedoms its people have yearned for, has won the country's run-off presidential vote, the interior ministry said Saturday.
"By gaining majority of the votes cast on Friday, Pezeshkian has become Iran's next president," it said.
The participation was around 50% in a tight race between Pezeshkian, the sole moderate in the original field of four candidates, and hard-line former nuclear negotiator Saeed Jalili, a staunch advocate of deepening ties with Russia and China.