Khatami headed for victory in Iranian ballot

Khatami pledges "independence, freedom and progress"

TEHRAN, Iran (CNN) -- Iranian voters appear to have handed reform-minded Iranian President Mohammad Khatami a resounding victory in his bid for a second term, dealing a rebuke to conservative hardliners who have dominated the country since the 1979 Islamic revolution.

Preliminary election results released Saturday showed that with 20 million ballots counted, Khatami had 77.4 percent of the vote, well ahead of his nine conservative and independent challengers. The Interior Ministry has yet to release final results confirming a Khatami win.

Officials estimated turnout was high in Friday's vote, with as many as 35 million people -- or about 83 percent of the country's eligible voters -- casting ballots. That percentage is the same as in the election four years ago when Khatami was swept to power.

Khatami, 58, a moderate Muslim cleric, had been favored to win. His supporters had said high turnout would be crucial in order to give him a mandate for reform because, historically in Iran, second-term presidents have seen their support slip.

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While reformers control the presidency and parliament, actual power still lies with religious authorities, including the country's supreme spiritual leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. They have blocked much of Khatami's reform agenda in his first term, and Khamenei, speaking after casting his ballot Friday, made clear that reform has limits.

"Every ballot in the box is a vote for an Islamic system of government here," he said.

Reformers are pushing for what they term an Islamic democracy, with a freer, more modern, more open society, attracting the support of younger people and women. A strong Khatami victory is seen as a demonstration of popular support for reform -- and a message to hardliners.

"They should be frightened," said Sayed Jalal Sadatian, an Iranian political analyst.

However, the biggest challenge facing Khatami may be improving the country's economy, which remains fragile despite Iran's oil wealth. Some analysts think hardliners might block needed economic reforms as a way to put pressure on Khatami.

CNN's Walter Rodgers contributed to this report.