| Surrounded by election staff and bodyguards, former commander of Iran's elite Revolutionary Guard, Mohsen Rezaei, seated, registers as a presidential candidate in Tehran |
Mohsen Rezaei Wednesday said he is dropping out to avoid splitting voter support among several conservative candidates. The announcement comes just two days before Friday's poll.
His exit leaves three hard-line conservatives in the race, as well as leading reform candidate Mostafa Moin, former president Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, and other lesser-known presidential hopefuls.
President Mohammad Khatami is barred from running for a third consecutive term.
Some information for this report provided by AP and AFP.
