THE furious protests paralyzing Haiti were provoked by the widespread suspicion that a botched presidential election is now being stolen. Haiti, with all of its many problems, desperately needs a credible, legitimately elected government, said The New York Times in an editorial published Friday. Excerpts: Haitian electoral officials need to scrupulously recheck vote totals under the close watch of outside observers. Haitians were already upset over last month's balloting, which was marred by procedural chaos and widespread accusations of intimidation and fraud. When President Rene Préval's handpicked electoral council announced on Tuesday that the president's protégé, Jude Célestin, had – contrary to reports from outside observers – edged out Michel Martelly, a popular musician, for a spot in a January runoff, crowds reacted with fury. The council's claim that Mirlande Manigat, a former first lady, had come in first is not being seriously questioned. The United States Embassy, in a blunt news release on Tuesday night, expressed its own skepticism about Mr. Célestin's apparent victory, calling it “inconsistent” with the findings of the National Election Observation Council, an outside group that had stationed “more than 5,500 observers at 1,600 voting centers nationwide” as well as with reports from officially accredited American observers and “vote counts observed around the country by numerous domestic and international observers.” All concluded that the top two vote-getters had been Ms. Manigat and Mr. Martelly, with Mr. Célestin in third. Whatever happens, Mr. Préval has a lot to answer for. He failed to take control in the days and weeks after the earthquake, and his continuing refusal to make the most basic decisions is hampering the rebuilding efforts. When it came to the elections, his role appears more malign than incompetent. For weeks before the vote, he resisted strong international pressure to remove corruption-tainted members from the election board. __
