Competing claims of victory in Iran

BBC:

The two main candidates in Iran's presidential election have claimed victory after voting closed in a poll that has drawn a large turnout.

State media said hardline President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad had won, and officials said he had taken 66% of the votes with 61% so far counted.

But reformist challenger Mir Hossein Mousavi told a news conference that he had won by a substantial margin.

Mr Mousavi also complained of a number of voting irregularities.

He said there had been a shortage of ballot papers and millions of people had been denied the right to vote.

His election monitors were not allowed enough access to polling stations, he added, saying he would deal seriously with any fraud.

"[We] are waiting for the counting of votes to officially end and explanations of these irregularities to be given," Mr Mousavi said.

...

Mousavi is clearly positioning himself to challenge the legitimacy of Ahmadinejad if the latter is announced as the winner. If the public perceives Mousavi the winner it can mean big trouble for Ahmadinejad. I will be surprised if Ahmadinejad does not find a way to stay in office regardless of the vote count.