Rouhani on course for landslide electoral win in Tehran

Reformist allies of Hassan Rouhani were on course on Sunday to win all 30 seats in Tehran in Iran's parliamentary elections, handing the moderate president a major boost even as one of his most senior conservative critics looked set to lose his seat.

The List of Hope, a pro-Rouhani coalition of moderates and reformists, looked set to wipe out its conservative rivals in the Iranian capital with 90 percent of ballots counted from Friday's vote.

A clean sweep would signal overwhelming public backing in the capital for Rouhani, whose negotiation of a landmark nuclear deal with world powers last year has brought the lifting of international sanctions long enforced against Iran and hopes for an economic recovery.

The rout was completed when state television said the head of the conservative list, Gholam-Ali Hadad Adel, a former parliament speaker, was lagging in 31st place and set to lose his seat.

Responding to the results, Rouhani tweeted that Iranians had "created a new atmosphere" with the vote. "I stand up in honour of you, the great people of Iran."

There were reports that Iranians were planning public street celebrations for Sunday night, although Mohammed Reza Aref, a key moderate winner, said these would not take place as the country is observing a traditional day of religious mourning.

The landslide in Tehran came after mixed results for the president's supporters in the provinces, in the first elections since sanctions were lifted last month under the nuclear agreement.

Preliminary results from a separate vote that took place on Friday for the powerful Assembly of Experts, which monitors the work of Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, were also heading Rouhani's way and could see top conservative clerics eliminated.

One of those who may yet lose his seat is Ahmad Jannati, who as head of the unelected Guardian Council was responsible for the disqualification of hundreds of moderate candidates ahead of the elections.

If the Tehran numbers are confirmed, it will seal a stunning comeback for reformists, long sidelined after the disputed re-election in 2009 of hardline president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad which was followed by bloody street protests.

Reformists said that ballot was rigged, and their two defeated candidates, Mir Hossein Mousavi and Mehdi Karroubi, have been held under house arrest since 2011.

For the first time since their detention began, Mousavi and his wife, also a prominent opposition activist, voted in the elections on Friday after a portable ballot box was brought to their house.

The head of the pro-Rouhani coalition, Mohammad Reza Aref, a former vice president, was in first place in voting in Tehran, with 1,323,643 votes.

The outspoken Ali Motahari, a conservative MP who switched sides and joined the slate headed by Aref, was in second spot with 1,185,398 votes.

Outside Tehran, where 108 seats out of 260 have been declared so far, 33 went to the main conservative list and 24 to the reformist List of Hope.

A further 28 seats went to independents, of whom 13 are known to lean towards conservatives and 11 are closer to reformists, with four of no clear affiliation.

None of the remaining 23 seats had a clear winner, meaning a second round of voting will be needed, which is not expected until April or May.