Iranian President poses with his chief of staff during a press conference in Tehran

In this Sunday, March 10, 2013 photo, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, left, holds hands with chief of staff Esfandiari Rahim Mashaei, during a press conference in Tehran, Iran. In the waning months of Ahmadinejad’s presidency weakened by years of internal battles with the ruling clerics there appears no bigger priority than attempting one last surprise. It’s built around rehabilitating the image of Rahim Mashaei and somehow getting him a place among the candidates for the June 14 vote. A poster with the portrait of Iranian supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei is seen at right. <AP Photo/NEWSis/Fars News Agency, Mohammad Hassanzadeh>