Iranian hardliners have won all 30 parliament seats in the capital, Tehran, state TV reported.
Former Tehran mayor Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf, a leading contender for the post of parliamentary speaker, was the top winner in Tehran with more than 1.2 million votes.
Iran’s interior ministry announced a 42.57% turnout, the first time turnout dipped below 50% since the 1979 Islamic Revolution.
Earlier, Iran’s supreme leader accused the country’s enemies of spreading “propaganda” over the coronavirus threat in an attempt to dissuade people from voting.
In remarks from his office in Tehran, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei blamed the “negative propaganda” of Iran’s enemies for trying to discourage people from voting.
“Their media did not ignore the tiniest opportunity for discouraging people and resorting to the pretext of diseases and the virus,” he said.
Iran reported its first case of the virus two days before the national polls, and eight deaths from the illness since then – the highest death toll from the virus outside of China.
Iran has confirmed 43 cases in total in at least four different cities, including the capital, Tehran, where some pharmacies have already run out of masks and hand sanitiser.
Schools were shut down in Tehran and four other cities for two days to prevent the spread of the virus. Authorities have also suspended football matches and stopped shows in cinemas and other venues.
