Backgrounder: Four candidates in upcoming Iranian presidential election

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-- Former Parliament Speaker Mehdi Karroubi

Karroubi, the current chairman of the National Trust Party, is regarded as a pragmatist reformist in Iran's political scene.

Karroubi was born in 1937 in the city of Aligoudarz in the western Iranian province of Lorestan. He holds a bachelor's degree in Western philosophy from Tehran University.

Karroubi was the speaker of the Iranian parliament from 2000 to2004, and from 1989 to 1992. He was among the candidates for the presidential election in 2005, where he finished third in the vote count.

Karroubi vows that he would change Iran's executive mode if he is elected as president, saying that Ahmadinejad's statements have caused many problems that make Iran pay a lot.

Admitting that changing Iran's gloomy image in the international society is an arduous task, Karroubi says he would prefer "good diplomacy" in foreign policy and try to establish "logical, wise and proud" relationship with other countries.