Message After the First Stage of the Fourth Islamic Consultative Assembly Elections

In the Name of God, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful

Now that, by the grace of God and the attentions of His Holiness, the Master of the Age (may my soul be sacrificed for him), the elections for the fourth term of the Islamic Consultative Assembly have concluded with the remarkable and responsible presence of our dear people in the first stage, and the results have been announced across the country, I feel it is my duty to extend my sincere gratitude to the noble, vigilant, and esteemed people. I bow in gratitude to the Almighty for your growth, awareness, determination, and timely action, O great nation.

You, dear nation, with this revolutionary movement, have brought joy to the sacred spirit of the late Imam and the pure souls of the martyrs, and you have honored their names.

This massive public presence in a matter that is connected to the fate of the country and plays a vital role in the future of Iran and the sacred system of the Islamic Republic was a wise and decisive response that the Iranian nation gave to the enemy's conspiracies, thwarting their plans to create an atmosphere of despair and ultimately to distance the people from the Islamic system for a long time.

Our dear nation has well understood that the spiteful enemies, in order to implement their conspiracies against dear Iran, need to remove the people from the scene of action and politics and make them indifferent to the important and major issues of the country. It was for this reason that long before the start of the fourth-term elections, they tried, through various languages and methods of propaganda, to make the Iranian people indifferent, discouraged, and hopeless about these elections.

You, aware and faithful people, with your unprecedented presence in the elections, thwarted all these malicious efforts of the enemies and made the whole world understand that the Iranian nation is still alive, vigilant, and ready to defend its great achievements of many years and to guard the fruits of the martyrs' blood.

Now, the global arrogance's propaganda network, after failing at this stage, seeks to, through spiteful interpretations and hostile insinuations about the elections, take away the sweetness of this great success from the Iranian nation's mouth and, by accusing the trustworthy and hardworking officials of the elections, make the people doubt the results of this divine test.

I declare: According to reliable reports, the elections across the country were conducted with integrity and precision, and confidence in their results is assured. I request speakers and writers who have the opportunity to speak with the people to always keep God in mind, speak the truth, and not, God forbid, assist the enemy's propaganda with false statements or reliance on baseless assumptions, thus not souring the people's sweet experience.

It is necessary to remind our dear people: In the constituencies where the complete election results have moved to the second stage, the people have not yet fully fulfilled their divine and political duty to participate in the elections. Participation in the second stage of the elections is a religious and political obligation, and all dear people in these constituencies must, on the appointed day, rush to the polling centers, cast their votes into the ballot boxes, and completely disappoint the enemies of Islam and Muslims. Also, God willing, voters should strive to write the names of all the candidates they consider necessary in the constituency.

I ask the Almighty God for grace, mercy, and divine success for you, the noble nation. I sincerely thank all those who conducted the elections and ask for the acceptance of the One God and divine reward for them.

Peace be upon all righteous servants of God.

Thirteenth of Shawwal 1412 - Corresponding to April 16, 1992

Seyyed Ali Khamenei