The following is the full text of an interview with Ayatollah Khamenei the Leader of the Islamic Revolution. The interview was conducted on June 12, 2009 immediately after the Leader cast his vote into the ballot box in Tehran.
Interviewer:
In the Name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful
I express my greetings to the Leader of the Islamic Revolution on behalf of the audience, especially the people working for the national media. Good morning.
Leader:
Salaamun alaikum wa rahmatullah.
Interviewer:
The 10th presidential election is, in fact, the first election in the 4th decade of the Islamic Revolution, which Your Eminence named "The Decade of Progress and Justice". The Iranian people are eager to hear your statements regarding today's election. Thank you.
Leader:
In the Name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful
I am thankful to Allah the Exalted who gave the Iranian nation another opportunity to take part in a great national test. Elections are the manifestation of enthusiastic and active presence of the people in the political arena. As far as I see and hear, the people are thankfully very enthusiastic and active in this election. I believe this is because of the presence of different candidates as well as public awareness and vigilance. And I am thankful to Allah. I expect Allah the Exalted will provide the people with an opportunity to succeed in another great test through their massive presence at the polling stations. Hopefully, the Creator of the world has determined that the best and the most qualified individual will be elected to head the executive branch for four years. Certainly, when faithful and enthusiastic people are present on the scene, Allah the Exalted will bestow His grace on them.
As usual, I would ask people to go to the ballot boxes early in the morning and during the early hours of the election. All people must go and vote. People must act on the basis of their own judgment and fulfill their share of the responsibility for determining the top manager of the executive branch. That is a right as well as a responsibility. The general public has the right to express their opinion, which is their responsibility as well. I believe people have a religious and rational obligation to do that.
There is another point that I would like to raise with our esteemed people. First of all, I want to express my gratitude for the enthusiastic presence of the people on the streets during the recent days and even nights. Each group of people could shout whatever slogans they wanted, but their maturity and awareness prevented the occurrence of a tragic event. They are present on the scene, they shout slogans, and they express their enthusiasm, but they also demonstrate their intellectual maturity and perfection. Security of the election is of paramount importance. We have been holding elections for thirty years, and the security of our elections has thankfully been ensured so far. That is a great blessing, which is the result of divine grace and intellectual maturity of our people. Today I hope the people will demonstrate the same security, peace, and spiritual calmness, and I ask them to be careful in this regard. There may be some ill-wishers who may cause turbulence at the polling stations. All kinds of turbulence will discredit the ballot boxes - that is to say, turbulence will harm the people and their votes. In case some individuals cause turbulence, people themselves should prevent the fulfillment of what the ill-wishers want through their dignity and patience.
People should not pay attention to the rumors. In the numerous text messages that are being sent around, I read some rumors yesterday and last night that were attributed to me. These rumors are downright lies. Benevolent people would not do such things. Only malevolent people would do these things. And these malevolent individuals may be found in all parts and among all kinds of people. People should not pay attention to these rumors. Like other days, today some rumors - about different parts of the election - may be spread among people. We primarily trust divine grace and assistance, and we ask Allah the Exalted for help. To a lesser extent, we also trust the awareness, intellectual maturity, and vigilance of the people.
Once again I would like to express my greetings to all our esteemed people. And I hope Allah the Exalted will make today an auspicious day for our nation. I express my sincere gratitude to you and other reporters who are present here. I also thank each and every official in charge of the election - both the friends who are present here and those who are working at the Ministry of Interior as well as other places.