HAITI ELECTIONS: NATIONAL TURNOUT 30.6%

UNCLAS PORT AU PRINCE 000722 SIPDIS SIPDIS STATE FOR WHA/CAR DRL S/CRS SOUTHCOM ALSO FOR POLAD STATE PASS AID FOR LAC/CAR INR/IAA (BEN-YEHUDA) TREASURY FOR MAUREEN WAFER E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PGOV PREL ASEC KDEM HA SUBJECT: HAITI ELECTIONS: NATIONAL TURNOUT 30.6% REF: PAUP 721 ¶1. CEP officials informed Emboff the morning of April 24 that with 98% of results tallied, voter turnout for the second round on April 21 was 30.6 nationally. The West Department, including Port-au-Prince and representing roughly one third of the total population, registered 20% turnout. The Northeast registered the highest turnout of any individual department at 47%. The CEP expected to complete vote tallying by 1400 and has scheduled a press conference for that time. CEP Director Jacques Bernard informed Emboff that with several races running neck-and-neck, he preferred to withhold partial results and post all final results on-line at the conclusion of the press conference. The CEP and MINUSTAH appear to have replicated their successful organization of election day with further successes in rapidly transporting and tallying election results from the field much quicker than expected. CEP officials at the tallying center reported that all but 47 of the over 2000 tally sheets had arrived at the vote tabulation center. ¶2. Comment. The larger than anticipated turnout belies earlier statements from international observers, notably from the chief of the EU's observer mission, that low-turnout had somehow marred the second round result. The chief of Haiti's domestic non-partisan National Observer Council told Polcouns on April 24 that the CNO would shortly publicize a positive evaluation of the second round. While reports of small-scale disruptions continue to filter in from the field, overall accounts overwhelmingly indicate a successful election in all organizational and security aspects. SANDERSON