The Leader of the Islamic Revolution, Ayatollah Sayyed Ali Khamenei, has highlighted the high turnout of the people in the upcoming Friday presidential runoff election.

Ayatollah Khamenei made the remarks in a meeting with scholars from Shahid Motahari University in the capital Tehran on Wednesday two days ahead of the second round of presidential election to be held on July 5.
 
The Leader highlighted the participation of people as the “backbone and source of pride for the Islamic Establishment.”
 
Ayatollah Khamenei said, “The better, clearer and more evident the participation, the more capable the system will be to achieve its domestic goals and to pursue the goals in the strategic development of the country, which is a big opportunity."
 
"This election is very important and anyone who loves Islam, the Islamic Republic, the progress of the country, the improvement of the situation and [favors] bridging the gaps should show this interest by participating in the election on Friday,” the Leader said.
 
Ayatollah Khamenei described the turnout in the first round of the election as less than expected and contrary to predictions, stressing that the reasons are being investigated by politicians and sociologists.
 
Campaigning for the runoff vote officially began on Sunday, a day after the results of the June 28 election were announced by the Interior Ministry.
 
Masoud Pezeshkian and Saeed Jalili received the highest number of votes but no candidate managed to secure the absolute majority, paving the way for the runoff election.