Iran holds runoff presidential vote pitting hard-liner against reformist after record low turnout

Iran is holding a runoff presidential election pitting a hard-line former nuclear negotiator against a reformist lawmaker. Both men earlier struggled to convince a skeptical public to cast ballots in the first round that saw the lowest turnout in the Islamic Republic’s history. Government officials up to Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei predicted a higher participation rate as voting took place Friday. State television aired images of modest lines at some polling centers across the country. But online videos purported to show some polling stations empty while a survey of several dozen sites in the capital Tehran saw light traffic amid a heavy security presence on the streets.