TEHRAN, Feb 22: Iranian religious conservatives were on Sunday assured of securing a comfortable majority in parliament as the counting of ballots cast in Friday's elections reached the final stages.
The interior ministry said counting was complete in 199 of Iran's 207 electoral districts, many of which return more than one deputy to the 290-seat Majlis.
According to official figures, 194 MPs have been elected and 55 seats will have to be contested in a second round after no single candidate managed to win 25 per cent of votes cast. Of the 194 seats allocated, only around 40 went to reformists, according to a examination of the voting lists. -AFP
