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Haiti Expected to Set Vote for December 27

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By Joe Mozingo

Miami Herald
November 17, 2005

Haiti's prime minister was expected to announce today that the nation's presidential and legislative elections would be postponed until December 27.


Under withering U.S. and French pressure to put a new government in office by February 7, Haitian officials have tentatively agreed to postpone presidential and legislative elections until two days after Christmas, foreign advisors said. Prime Minister Gérard Latortue was expected to announce the decision today, although there was still some debate about the date, given that many Haitians will be visiting families far from their designated polling places during the holidays. If the decision stands, it could significantly diminish voter turnout and threaten the legitimacy of the new government to replace President Jean-Bertrand Aristide, who was ousted in a violent revolt last year.

Time Running Out

Yet preparations for the elections have been so beset by controversy and mismanagement that Dec. 27 is virtually the only date by which the balloting can be held and still have time for a runoff on Jan. 31, if no candidates win more than 50 percent of the vote. The runoff date would allow only a few days to resolve the virtually inevitable disputes over the results and still inaugurate the new president on Feb. 7 as required by Haiti's constitution. With 35 presidential candidates, the margins between each are likely to be close, and observers expect at least some candidates to cry foul.

U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has told the interim government that it's critical to put a democratically elected government in the National Palace by the deadline in order to assure its political legitimacy. France is also pushing to meet the Feb. 7 deadline, its officials have said. U.N. electoral advisors say it's still possible, albeit barely, to hold an election little more than five weeks from now. But some Haitians insist that is unrealistic. ''I don't think it's possible,'' said Patrick Féquire, a member of the Provisional Electoral Council. ``We still need to hire 40,000 poll workers. That's a lot to do -- and train them too!''

Date Questioned

Some observers question why Haitian officials and U.N. electoral advisors, who spent months registering 3.4 million voters, would hold the first round during the holidays, when many leave the capital. ''The 27th is a weird, weird day,'' said Robert Fatton, Jr., a Haiti expert and political science professor at the University of Virginia. ``I don't see why they don't wait until the end of January when they are ready.'' Fatton said he doesn't understand ''the obsession'' with having a new government by Feb. 7, when it is clear that Latortue is planning to relinquish his power when elections are complete. He said it's far more important to have an election that is seen as legitimate.

The elections were originally set for Oct. 9, then postponed to Nov. 20, although officials floated other dates as well.The ballots only went to the printer on Monday after a fight over whether Dumarsais Simeus -- a Haitian American who runs a $100 million food empire based in Texas -- could run for president. Simeus is a naturalized American citizen, but Article 13 of the Haitian Constitution says citizenship is lost by naturalization in another country. The electoral council denied his candidacy in September. He appealed to the Supreme Court, which unanimously ruled that the council did not have enough evidence to reject him. But on Saturday, the council released its final list of 35 presidential candidates -- and he was not on it.

"Shameful Attempt"

In a news release Simeus called the move ``another shameful attempt by this same small clique of power-hungry anti-democracy forces to mastermind the outcome of Haiti's presidential election.'' Simeus and his attorneys insist that his U.S. passport should not negate his Haitian citizenship. He plans to petition Rice and other foreign leaders to pressure Latortue to allow him to run. He also said he might go to a judge to force the council to abide by the Supreme Court's ruling. If he succeeds, it would likely further stall the process.

Ex-Leader's Momentum

While the bureaucrats scramble to prepare, the candidates are campaigning in earnest. No comprehensive political polls have been made public, so it is difficult to know whether there is a clear front-runner. But many observers say former President René Préval, a leftist and Aristide ally, seems to be the candidate to beat. ''Préval is the front-runner, no doubt,'' said Félix Ulloa, resident director of the U.S.-funded National Democratic Institute of International Affairs, which helps parties organize in Haiti. ``Even the right-wing say they're okay with him.'' Oddly, Préval is running as an independent, not on the ticket of Aristide's Lavalas Family party, which supported his winning presidential bid in 1996. ''He wants to break with Aristide,'' Ulloa said. Aristide has not endorsed a candidate or the elections as a whole. But residents from the slum of Cité Soleil -- a stronghold of his supporters and a place that has been militantly opposed to the election until recently -- marched in support of Préval earlier this month, according to news reports.

Lavalas Contender

The official Lavalas candidate, Marc Bazin, is also considered a heavyweight contender. Bazin lost to Aristide in the 1990 presidential election and later worked as a minister in his administration. He has vowed to free all political prisoners, which Lavalas party leaders have been demanding for months. The sideshow over Simeus' citizenship has given him much free publicity in Haiti and there's anecdotal evidence that he might have support in poor neighborhoods, where some residents have said they want a ''rich'' president because he will be less susceptible to Haiti's notorious corruption and cronyism.


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FAIR USE NOTICE: This page contains copyrighted material the use of which has not been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. Global Policy Forum distributes this material without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. We believe this constitutes a fair use of any such copyrighted material as provided for in 17 U.S.C § 107. If you wish to use copyrighted material from this site for purposes of your own that go beyond fair use, you must obtain permission from the copyright owner.