Episode 6 - Debating Taboos: How Effective are the Candidates' Appeals to Ethnic Minorities and Women?
It’s one week to Election Day and the first two debates have taken place, with candidates trading insults and making extravagant promises. There was also a concerted effort to appeal to ethnic minorities and women, two significant marginalised groups, to win their votes. In this episode, Dr James Barry discusses the viability of this approach with Dr Elham Naeej, Dr Ali Mozaffari and Dr Naser Ghobadzadeh, asking why Azerbaijanis in particularly are the focus of candidates’ attention. Also up for discussion, the Supreme Leader’s attempt to intervene on the candidates’ list, the absence of foreign policy discussions in the debates and the ongoing issue of accountability. In the second part, special guest Dr Alam Saleh of the Australian National University discusses the politics of ethnicity and sectarianism in Iran, and the use of marginal groups by the state.