Who are the four candidates vying for Iran's presidency?

Iranians will choose between mostly four candidates in an early presidential election following the death of Ebrahim Raisi in a helicopter crash.

Only six candidates from over 80 hopefuls survived screening by the Guardian Council, a panel of clerics and jurists which is overseen by the Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, who has the final say in all matters of state.

Two candidates dropped out of the race ahead of the election.

Following are brief sketches of four candidates running for president's office in Iran:

Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf

A former Iran Revolutionary Guards commander and ally of Khamenei, Qalibaf is the current speaker of the parliament.

He previously ran unsuccessfully for president twice and was compelled to withdraw from a third bid in 2017 to prevent a divided hardline vote in Raisi's initial failed presidential attempt.

In 2005, Qalibaf resigned from the Guards to run for president.

Following his unsuccessful campaign, he assumed the position of Tehran mayor with the supreme leader's endorsement, a role he occupied for 12 years.

In 2009, Qalibaf took credit as Tehran mayor for helping suppress bloody unrest that rocked the establishment after a presidential vote that opposition candidates said was "rigged" to secure hardline Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's re-election.

Saeed Jalili

Jalili is a hardline diplomat who lost his right leg in the 1980s when fighting for the Guards in the Iran-Iraq war.

He has declared being a pious believer in Iran's "velayat-e faqih", or rule by supreme jurisprudence, a system of Islamic government that provides the basis for the Supreme Leader position.

Appointed by Khamenei, Jalili served as secretary of the Supreme National Security Council for five years from 2007, a position that automatically made him chief nuclear negotiator.

Jalili also served for four years in Khamenei's office and was an unsuccessful candidate in the 2013 presidential election.

A former deputy foreign minister, Jalili was appointed by Khamenei in 2013 as a member of the Expediency Council, a body that mediates disputes between parliament and the Guardian Council.

Massoud Pezeshkian

An Iranian lawmaker of Turkic ethnicity, Pezeshkian is the only reformist candidate approved by the Guardian Council and backed by the pro-reform camp.

His prospects depend on attracting millions of disillusioned voters who have stayed home in elections since 2020.

A physician by profession, Pezeshkian served as the health minister under President Mohammad Khatami from 2001 to 2005 and has held a seat in parliament since 2008.

Pezeshkian was barred from the 2021 presidential election.

Mostafa Pourmohammadi

The only cleric in the race, Pourmohammadi served as interior minister during the first term of former president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad from 2005 until 2008 and minister of justice from 2013 until 2017.

He was educated in Islamic jurisprudence, principles of jurisprudence, and philosophy at the Haqqani Seminary in Qom.