Reza Khatami, the brother of the President of the Islamic Republic of Iran, is in the back of a silver Oldsmobile racing toward the next campaign stop. Fighting Tehran's afternoon rush hour, his driver maneuvers between the lanes and cuts off other cars while en route from a student rally to address older voters in a mosque out of town. Unfazed by the commotion, the candidate concentrates on explaining why he is running for a seat in Iran's Majlis-e-Shu-ra, or national assembly. "We want to see democracy take firmer root and blossom," he says. "If the reformers win, we will create an environment where it can flourish." As the driver does a crazy U-turn, Khatami flashes a wide grin.
展开▼
