TEHERAN - Iranian women have recorded a strong showing in municipal elections, leaving men trailing in their wake in several major cities, media reported on Sunday.

A 25-year-old student, Fatemeh Houshmand, close to reformists, won the highest number of votes in Friday’s local elections for the southern city of Shiraz.

In the central city of Arak another female reformist, Fariba Abagheri, who leads the youth section of the main reformist party the Participation Front, won the most votes.

Women were also the top candidates elected in the cities of Ardebil, Zanjan and Hamedan.

Around 7,000 women were candidates in the election out of a total 235,000 hopefuls.

Women are increasingly active in politics and also now outnumber men at Iran’s universities.

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