Iranians begin voting for president
Iranians have begun voting on whether to keep hardline president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in power for four more years.
The alternative is replacing him with a reformist candidate more open to loosening the country's Islamic restrictions and improving ties with the US.
More than 45,000 polling places around the country opened on Friday.
The rowdy election campaign, which lasted less than a month, electrified many voters and reshaped how the world sees Iran's political process.
The mass street demonstrations, polished campaign slogans and televised debates more closely resembled Western elections than the scripted coronations in most other Middle Eastern countries.
Following tradition, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei placed his ballot in the white ballot box just minutes after the polls opened. Ayatollah Khamenei, who has the final say in all state matters, urged Iranians to vote early and in a peaceful manner.
Election fever took hold of Iran, intensifying dramatically over the final week. Wild, late-night street demonstrations felt more like parties, halting traffic and giving Tehran's youth a rare chance to dance in the streets.
Stakes are high, both domestically and internationally, even though the real power rests with the unelected Ayatollah Khamenei. He wields control over every major decision, and the president's powers are limited by the ruling clerics.
So far, the country's leaders have not rushed to embrace US president Barack Obama's offer to open a dialogue after three decades of diplomatic stalemate. But they left open the possibility of talks in the future.
Mr Ahmadinejad has proposed a "debate" with Mr Obama. His top pro-reform opponent, Mir Hossein Mousavi, has said he would seek better relations with Washington to try to soften Iran's international image. The ruling clerics have given no signals that they are willing to switch course on Iran's most contentious issue -- its nuclear programme.
