Ahmadinejad: Iran can be better managed - Talk to Al Jazeera

In a move that shocked Iranians and many in the international community, Iran's former President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, registered to run in next month's presidential election.

He left office in August 2013, after two four-year terms marked by his anti-Western rhetoric. And his decision to run this year went against the advice of the country's Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. But Ahmadinejad claimed that his registration only aimed to support the candidacy of his political ally Hamid Baghaei.

Under Iran's electoral system, all submissions must be assessed by the Guardian Council. It is a cleric-dominated body that plays a central role in the country's political arena due to its legislative functions and judicial authority.

On Thursday April 20, Iranian state television announced that the council had approved six candidates for the election on May 19, including the incumbent president Hassan Rouhani.

But Ahmadinejad was disqualified.

In an interview recorded just a few days earlier, he called for regional unity and claimed that it is possible to run Iran better than it is now. Iran's former President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad talks to Al Jazeera.

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