Manouchehr Mottaki, who heads the Unity Council, a powerful Principalist umbrella group, said that there was a consensus in the organisation in supporting Ebrahim Raisi. Mottaki acknowledged that Raisi has not yet nominated, and may not, in which case the Unity Council will make a decision from the other pool of candidates. However, Mottaki added that “if we apply the model of 2013, our defeat is certain”, while the model of 2017 worked better. This is most likely a reference to the large field of Principalist candidates in the 2013 election splitting the conservative vote.
