Haiti Presidential Election Ends in Disarray on Allegations of Voter Fraud
Haiti’s presidential election ended in disarray as 12 of 18 candidates demanded the vote be annulled for alleged fraud and the United Nations said related violence threatened to undermine attempts to contain a cholera epidemic.
Michel Martelly, an ex-pop star, and Mirlande Manigat, a former first lady, were among candidates calling for yesterday’s election to be declared void. Gaillot Dorsinvil, president of the electoral council, denied that the ballot was fraudulent and said votes at 96 percent of polling stations had been validated, Radio Metropole reported.
Results in the election, Haiti’s first since January’s earthquake, aren’t expected until at least Dec. 7. About 4.5 million people were eligible to cast ballots for a new leader to replace President Rene Preval, along with 11 of 30 senators and all 99 parliament deputies.
A UN statement referred to “numerous incidents” that threatened the vote and said any “deterioration” of the security situation could complicate efforts to treat a cholera outbreak that has killed more than 1,600 people and left 31,000 requiring hospital treatment.
Twelve presidential candidates demanded the vote be thrown out in a joint statement released yesterday afternoon before polls closed. Martelly led protests at the provisional electoral council accompanied by Haitian-born hip-hop artist Wyclef Jean, who was banned from running in the ballot.
‘Massive Fraud’
Manigat, who led in local polls before the election, alleged “massive fraud” and “unacceptable” irregularities, according to a statement on her party’s website. Ruling party candidate Jude Celestin didn’t back calls to scrap the vote.
Clashes between rival political factions killed two people in the capital of Port-au-Prince, Metropole reported. Voting was halted early in two northern towns as residents protested alleged irregularities, it said.
Many voters are among the 1.3 million people still living in tent camps after they were left homeless by the quake, which killed 300,000. Some of the displaced complained of confusion about where to vote and said they were turned away from polling booths, according to Leila Rusciani, a spokeswoman for Martelly’s campaign.
To contact the reporter on this story: Blake Schmidt in Granada, Nicaragua at bschmidt16@bloomberg.net
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Joshua Goodman at jgoodman19@bloomberg.net
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