The Council of the Revolutionary Guards (akin to a Constitutional Council) on Tuesday released a list of eight candidates declared eligible for the presidential election on June 14.

The Council had to select among 686 candidates who had put their names forward, including former President Rafsanjani (the richest man in the country), and the former chief of staff Mahmoud Ahmadinejad Mashaie, both of whom were barred from the ballot.

The final candidates are:

– Mohammad-Reza Aref, university professor, former first vice-president of Iran (2001-05);
– Gholam-Ali Haddad-Adel, former chairman of the Iranian parliament (2004-08), his daughter is married to the son of Iran’s Supreme Leader;
– Saïd Jalili, secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council (since 2007);
– Mohammad Baker Kalibaf, former police commander (1999-2005), mayor of Téhéran (since 2005);
– Seyed Mohammad Sadegh Kharrazi, former ambassador to the United Nations (1997-2002), then to France (2002-06);
– Mohsen Rezaï, former Revolutionary Guard Corps chief commander (1981-97);
– Hassan Rowhani, former secretary of the Supreme National Security Council (1999-2005), head of the Center for Strategic Research;
– Ali Akbar Velayati, former Foreign Affairs Minster (1981-97), private secretary to the Supreme Leader.

In summary, 5 candidates close to the Supreme Leader and 3 close to former president Khatami.