Another surprising outcome was that the election results came despite vehement attacks from conservative leaders, massive disqualification of proposed reformists candidates and voter intimidation from Iran’s hardline political right. The BBC reported that the chief of staff of the Iranian armed forces, Hassan Firouzabadi, tried to discredit the election results by claiming British and American interference.

To an Iranian audience, Firouzabadi’s comments accusing the reformists of being “followers of the British,” were meant to stoke fear that Iran’s shifting political landscape is taking the country back to the days when the Americans, and before them the British, pulled the strings in Iranian politics. But despite all of the attempts by the ruling conservatives to hold on to power, when the votes were tallied a moderate-reformist coalition came out on top. These results prove that the majority of the Iranian people agree with Rouhani’s rapprochement with the west.

A similar effort to disqualify reform-leaning candidates in Iran’s 2012 presidential election left the more centrist Rouhani as the only alternative to the conservatives on the ballot. He was elected despite the strong opposition from Iranian conservatives.

Soon after taking office, Rouhani took great political risk in negotiating the P5+1 agreement. Now fully implemented, the agreement has all but shut down Iran’s nuclear program, but it resulted in the end of sanctions. Probably with these elections in mind, Rouhani set out to prove that the deal was worth it.

In January, the lifting of sanctions on Iranian finances freed about $100 billion in frozen assets that are now available to aid Iran’s ailing economy. Rouhani followed up the lifting of sanctions with a European shopping expedition that netted big deals for Iranian aerospace and other industries. One such multibillion-dollar deal was for 114 new commercial jet aircraft from France’s Airbus Industries. The deal will include training, and airport upgrades that Rouhani promises will bring Iran’s air service into the 21st century. Global business news outlets reported in late January that “Iran had rejoined the global economy.” Rouhani is riding a wave of popular approval at home, and those candidates supporting him are drafting in his wake.