TEHRAN, Iran - Opponents of Iran's ultra-conservative president won nationwide elections for local councils, final results confirmed Thursday.

Head of Irans Elections Headquarters of the Interior Ministry, Mojtaba Samareh-Hashemi, speaks with Iranian female journalists in Tehran, Iran, Wednesday Dec. 20, 2006. [AP]

 Moderate conservatives critical of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad won a majority of seats in last week's elections, followed by reformists who were suppressed by hard-liners two years ago.

The vote was widely seen as a sign of public discontent with Ahmadinejad's stances, which have fueled fights with the West and led Iran closer to UN sanctions.

Ahmadinejad's anti- Israel rhetoric and staunch stand on Iran's nuclear program are believed to have divided the conservatives who voted him into power. Some conservatives feel Ahmadinejad has spent too much time confronting the West and failed to deal with Iran's struggling economy.

Final results of Friday's local elections announced by the Interior Ministry show moderate conservatives opposed to Ahmadinejad have won a majority of the seats.

The voting also represented a partial comeback for reformists - who favor closer ties with the West and further loosening of social and political restrictions under the Islamic government.