Zia Hashemi, speaking at a meeting on "The Role of the News Media Outlets in Increasing People's Participation in Elections" at the Institute for Humanities and Cultural Studies, said on Sunday that the turnout in parliamentary elections was typically between 50 percent and 70 percent and although it may have been more or less in some circumstances, it has usually been around this limit.

Referring to the impact of small-town turnout on ethnic issues and at the same time political motivations, he expressed hoped to witness high turnout in the upcoming elections.

Referring to the recent events after the petrol price hike, the senior media expert noted that the pace of events and developments in our country is very high, and the developments in the coming months can have a huge impact on increasing participation.

"People feel the effect of the presidential election is more tangible because, in the parliament, the outcome is important; that is why the motivation to run for parliament is less," he said. Big cities like Tehran, which have 5 representatives, are different and they have a good influence.

The director of the Islamic Republic News Agency stated that in a modern and complex society, the process of recognition is not achieved through traditional methods, saying that the role of the media is important here and the media is the most important element that can contribute to the process of transparency to increase participation.

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