Haiti’s independent electoral commission was running out of time on Tuesday to study polling returns from October’s first round of presidential elections, threatening to further delay the process. In theory, the newly formed agency has until Wednesday to re-examine the first round of voting, which the opposition alleges was marred by widespread fraud, and to produce a report on the way forward. The second round had been due to go ahead on Sunday but has already been delayed indefinitely, and opposition flagbearer Jude Celestin had refused to campaign until the ballot-rigging is investigated.
Haiti’s latest period of electoral limbo — polling has never gone smoothly in the western hemisphere’s poorest country — has been accompanied by rising tension in the streets and fears of unrest.
Rosny Desroches, spokesman for the independent electoral commission, said the commission had established a sample of 2,000 ballot tallies out of 13,000 local counts and was working to analyze them.
But he admitted that it would be difficult to complete the task by Wednesday as had been mandated by presidential decree.
Full Article: Time running out to avoid new Haiti poll delay – Yahoo News.