Standing in line to vote in a mosque polling station on Friday, Fatemah Moghaddasi had no doubt about whom she was supporting in Iran’s presidential elections.

“We don’t want our country to be trapped in a no-hijab situation, with no discipline,” Moghaddasi said, clutching her black hijab with one hand. “We will only accept Ahmadinejad.”

Moghaddasi was one of tens of millions of Iranians who crowded to the polls to take part in what is widely seen here as a referendum on the hardline policies of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. Turnout appeared to be extraordinarily high, with long lines forming outside some polling stations well before they opened at 8 am.

Polls closed at 7 pm, after election officials extended voting for an hour due to the high turnout. Early results are not expected until 12 hours after the polls close. The strong showing appeared to be driven in part by a broad movement against Ahmadinejad that has spurred vast opposition rallies in Iran’s major cities over the past few weeks. Many reform-oriented voters stayed away from the polls in 2005, and now say they are determined not to repeat the mistake. Most say they support Mir Hussein Moussavi, a moderate and former Prime Minister who is the leading opposition candidate.

There are four candidates in the race, and if none wins more than 50 per cent of the vote on Friday, the top two contenders will compete in a runoff a week later. Most analysts have assumed that the election will go to a second round, but in recent days, the extraordinary public support for Moussavi has led to predictions that he could win the presidency in the first round on Friday.

... contd.