"The economy is the issue. I will vote for those who can sew up the hole in my pocket," said Ali Mashallahi, a government employee with three children.
SHRUGGING OFF COMPLAINTS
Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who usually stays above the political fray, effectively endorsed Ahmadinejad in remarks published on Thursday and relayed in mobile phone text messages as voters went to the polls.
He said Iranians should consider "voting for those who can pave the way for the current government, which is active and willing to serve".
Shrugging off complaints that the system was stacked against reformists, Ahmadinejad said after voting: "Parliament belongs to the people and it should be a reflection of what they want."
Some Iranians were not convinced their votes would count.
"Ahmadinejad's supporters will win again, so why should I bother?" said Farnak, 25, a housewife out shopping.
Reformists, while arguing the election was unfair because many of their candidates were disqualified, had urged Iran's 44 million eligible voters to deny conservatives an easy victory.
Some of those queuing at the Haft-e Tir polling station at a Tehran mosque echoed that argument. "We have to support reformists. If we don't vote, their opponents will take more seats," said Mohammad Ziafati, 62, a retired teacher.
The poll may offer clues to Ahmadinejad's chances of re-election next year, though analysts say he will need to keep the support of Khamenei and other parts of the state apparatus.
Khamenei, not Ahmadinejad or parliament, has the last word on major policy issues such as the nuclear programme.
The president can rely on loyalists like Hassan Siavashi, 45. "It is my religious duty to vote. I pray God will help Ahmadinejad's group to win," he said before voting in Tehran.
Bibi Zahra, an elderly woman in a black chador, said she had put her trust in her son's choice. "I don't know who I was voting for, he filled in the form for me," she added.
