President Hassan Rouhani has warned Iranians of the prospect of extremism and repression if he is defeated in his bid for re-election on May 19.

Rouhani told a campaign rallyk in Yazd in central Iran:

We will not let them bring the security and police atmosphere back to the country.

Iranians will prove to the world at the May 19 election that the era of violence, extremism and pressures in our country is over and Iran is pursuing the path of reason.

In 2009, the regime pursued mass detentions, disruption of communications, and banning of opposition movements as it tried to quell protests over the disputed re-election of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. However, despite attempts to block a return by centrists or reformists to return to power in 2013, Rouhani won a surprise first-round victory.

The President has tried to open up Iran’s political and cultural sphere, but has been largely checked by other regime elements, including the judiciary, the Revolutionary Guards, and the Supreme Leader’s office. Opposition leaders, journalists, students, artists, and activists remain in prison or under strict house arrest, while communications and the public sphere are still restricted.

Rouhani is being challenged in the election by cleric Ebrahim Raisi, who is supported by the Supreme Leader’s office, and conservative Tehran Mayor Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf.

The President said in a televised speech, following Friday’s first debate, that “freedom is the most important issue for the Iranians” and that he had ordered the intelligence ministry not to “interfere in people’s privacy”.