Hasan Rowhani, head of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, seemed confident Bush would not bow to pressure from members of his administration for military action against Iran’s nuclear facilities. “We haven’t seen anything good from Democrats,” he told state-run television. “We do not desire to see Democrats take over.” Rowhani reminded television viewers of the sanctions imposed when Bill Clinton was president and added: “We should not forget that during Bush’s era — despite his hardline and baseless rhetoric — he didn’t take, in practical terms, any dangerous action against Iran.”

The axis of evil is clearly as deeply divided over the election as the United States. North Korea, another founder member, pulled no punches, calling Bush “an imbecile and a tyrant who puts Hitler in the shade”. Kim Jong-il, the North Korean dictator, has not formally endorsed John Kerry but his decision to have the Democrat candidate’s speeches broadcast regularly on state radio speaks for itself. Kerry’s policy of reviewing travel sanctions against Cuba is thought to make him the choice of Fidel Castro, but a spokesman for President Robert Mugabe of Zimbabwe could muster no enthusiasm for either candidate: “They are both hostile to us.”