PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (CMC):
COUNTING OF ballots continues in Haiti fol-lowing Tuesday's elections, with the organisers expressing general satisfaction over the conduct of the polls.
So far, no official word has been given on the actual turnout of the elections for which preliminary results were expected yesterday.
Electoral officials say all indications are of a high turnout of the 3.5 million eligible voters, given an unexpectedly high level of voter participation.
On Tuesday, Haitians flocked to the polls in the thousands to exercise their franchise in an election in which former President René Preval was the favourite to replace exiled President Jean-Bertrand Aristide.
Aristide's Lavalas Family party also remains a force to be reckoned with in Haiti, where over 50 political parties and more than 1,000 candidates also contested legislative elections on Tuesday.
The assistant secretary general of the Organisation of American States, Ambassador Albert Ramdin, told the Caribbean Media Corporation that despite several hiccups recorded in the process, he was generally pleased that the majority of the electorate was not disenfranchised.
