Counting begins in Haiti elections

UN troops mobilised helicopters, trucks and even mules yesterday to recover ballots from remote areas in an arduous vote-counting process as Haitians nervously awaited results of long-delayed presidential and legislative elections.

Election workers counted ballots by candlelight into the late evening after Tuesday’s vote, which officials hailed as a success despite massive delays that crippled polling stations and enraged voters. The poll was largely free of violence.

An international observer said turnout was high.

Rene Preval, 63 an agronomist who led Haiti in 1996-2001, was the front-runner among 33 presidential candidates. His closest rivals include Leslie Manigat, who was president for five months in 1988 until the army ousted him.

The elections, held under the watch of a 9,000-strong UN peacekeeping force, were deemed vital to averting a political and economic meltdown in the Caribbean’s poorest nation.

If no candidate wins a majority in the first round, the top two finishers will compete in a March 19 run-off.

The count gained momentum as election workers returned to polls yesterday. Ballots from 40 of the 800 stations have been counted and are being brought to the capital, UN spokesman David Wimhurst said.

“We have to get the stuff down from the mountain on mules ... so it’s going to take a while. We’re sending helicopters so they will help as well.”

The UN has not received any reports of fraud or other major irregularities in the voting, he said.

A huge turn-out all but overwhelmed electoral officials, who conceded they were ill-prepared for the crush of voters who formed long lines before dawn.

Many Haitians voted by candlelight after spending hours queuing at some polling stations.

Many stations opened late, lacking the necessary workers, security and ballots to handle the crush of voters who turned out by foot, car and brightly coloured buses.

Experts called the election a step toward democracy in the destitute Caribbean country, saying the heavy turnout showed Haitians felt safe despite warnings that chronic violence would keep voters away. At least four deaths were reported, but authorities said balloting was largely free of violence.