Tehran, July 1 (Reuters): Two losing contenders in Iran’s presidential election denounced the result today in clear defiance of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, saying Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s next cabinet would be illegitimate.

Both men issued statements on their websites describing Ahmadinejad’s future government as “illegitimate” — even though Khamenei, the Islamic Republic’s ultimate arbiter, has upheld the result.