Mahmoud Ahmadinejad Votes Nine Hours Late, Loses Presidential Election

Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, The 56 year old President and dictator of Iran has lost the presidential vote. Fridays national elections have determined that the current Presidents time in office will end soon. He will depart the gates of the Presidential palace no later than August 3rd.

According to many experts it’s unlikely the Iranian leader will leave quietly and without a fuss. Mahmoud Ahmadinejad virtually bought his country to its knees during his time in office. This is primarily due to his aggressive nuclear program which saw crippling sanctions imposed on Iran.

The Iranian leader broke with convention and in a typical display of audacity did not turn up to cast his vote until 5:22pm, nine hours after the polling stations opened. It is customary in Iran for leaders and politicians to be among the first to cast their votes, in the morning when polling stations open.

Suzanne Maloney, of the Saban Center for Middle East Policy and a former State Department adviser spoke to Nbcnews.com commenting on the recent events in Iran: “He (Mahmoud Ahmadinejad) is unlikely to retire quietly in the way that his predecessors have done where they play a role in the political scene, but they are very cautious not to disrupt the balance of power in any way. That’s not Ahmadinejad’s style”.

Ray Takeyh of the Council on Foreign Relations comments that it will be hard for the outgoing president to garner support further to this election: “He would have to have a constituency, a popular base. And he doesn’t seem to have that. I think his presence in the last week of the election, his insignificance and inconsequentiality, probably portends his life after office”.

Whatever his future plans it is likely that world leaders, especially western ones will watching Mahmoud Ahmadinejad very closely. It is unclear how advanced Iran’s nuclear program is thanks to Ahmadinejad’s influence over the last 8 years.

Do you think Mahmoud Ahmadinejad will slip into the background of politics in Iran or do you think he will continue to encourage the countries aggressive nuclear program which threatens world peace? Your comments below.