The Plague of Democracy

[Zeno]

Iran in a tangle: Who's on first

-Zeno

[ACPlayer]

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The stakes grew even higher after President Bush issued a statement on the eve of the vote saying that Iran's electoral process "ignores the basic requirements of democracy."

State television cast the White House statement as a taunt, saying Bush had declared that the vote of Iranians did not count. Numerous voters said the statement prompted them to vote.

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I see that Bush continues his unproductive meddling in internal politics of other countries. But then he does want a hardline Iranian government rather than a moderate one.

[Zeno]

From the article:

[ QUOTE ]
An element of the bizarre was added to the whole affair because Ahmadinejad, who had hovered at the back of the field of candidates in pre-election opinion surveys, announced hours before the ministry issued its own results that he would be in Friday's runoff.



The government did not respond to the charges of vote tampering, but the cloud had been hanging over the race since the early-morning hours when the Interior Ministry found its results being publicly contradicted on state television by the Guardian Council, the panel controlled by hard-line clerics that has the ultimate say over all government actions. It has, for example, the power to unilaterally reject the outcome of the election.



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[ QUOTE ]
Initially, the Interior Ministry had Rafsanjani first, Karroubi second and Ahmadinejad third. A half-hour later the Guardian Council, which is not supposed to be involved in counting ballots, said Ahmadinejad was in first place.

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-Zeno

[ACPlayer]

[ QUOTE ]
It has, for example, the power to unilaterally reject the outcome of the election.

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Just like the SCOTUS. [img]/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img]

[Arnfinn Madsen]

Does anybody know why at all they hold elections? To reduce pressure internationally or domestically, or both?