The latest figures released by Irans Interior Ministry, the official organ responsible for counting the ballots has thus far placed Ayatollah Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani as leading the polls with 21.3 percent of the votes, down from an earlier estimate of 21.9 percent.
He is closely followed by Mehdi Karroubi with 19.7 percent and just trailing at third position is Mahmoud Ahmadinejad with 18.5 percent, according to the ministry.
However, Irans hard-line Guardian Council, the highest vetting organ within the clerical establishment, has just announced Ahmadinejad in second position with 19.4 percent and Karroubi as third with 17.5 percent of the vote.
The stark difference is raising serious doubts as to the validity of the vote, which is not being carried out under international supervision.
Despite an announcement by the Interior Ministry that 24,026,634 votes had been counted, which is itself a highly suspect figure given widespread voter apathy and that many polling stations were left empty yesterday, according to the Guardian Council, 26,976,671 votes had been counted. It is not clear how the GC has obtained the more than 2 million extra votes while the Interior Ministry insists that they have not yet been counted.
One Iran expert told Iran Focus that he suspects the latest tally to be the result of serious vote rigging.
Both official organs have placed former head of state police Mohammad-Baqer Qalibaf in forth place.
