2006年VOA标准英语-Despite Election Day Mishaps, Haitians Vot
时间：2019-01-31 作者：英语课 分类：2006年VOA标准英语（二月）
By Amelia Shaw
Port-au-Prince, Haiti
08 February 2006
Haitians stayed at the polls into the late hours Tuesday in the first democratic elections since former president Jean Bertrand Aristide went into exile following a violent uprising nearly two years ago. Millions turned out for the vote, in some cases overwhelming their polling sites.
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People line up to vote in Petionville suburb of Port-au-Prince
Midline George woke up at dawn Tuesday to walk to her polling stations to vote for a new government. But, when she got to her polling site on lower Delmas in Port-au-Prince, she had no idea she would be in line for so long.
"I am hungry," she said. "I have been [here] since four in the morning. I left my kids at home alone, they have not eaten, it is 10:30 and we still have not voted."
Many polls opened hours late because a lack of materials, absent election workers, and missing ballots 2. There were other problems, too. Many Haitians found their names left off the voting register or that they had been assigned to the wrong voting booth.
Violence broke out in some polling sites. In Port-au-Prince, two elderly men died when crowds stampeded a polling center. Near the town of St. Marc, a policeman shot into a stampeding crowd, killing 3 one. The policeman was then killed by the crowd of angry voters.
But overall, Haitians waited patiently to vote.
In a statement released by Provisional Election Council president Max Mathurin, the government sought to maintain calm.
UN-sponsored poster reads: "I vote for Haiti's future"
"Despite the problems," he said, "we guarantee that every Haitian who has a voter identity card will have the chance to vote."
The polls remained open a few hours later to accommodate the voters. U.N. officials say that the population voted in large numbers. They say they hope this will be an important step to returning the country to legitimacy 4, after 20 years of instability and successive coups 5. Hundreds of international election monitors watched the vote.
There are 33 presidential candidates on the ballot 1. The frontrunner is a former president and Aristide protégé, Rene Preval. If no candidate receives the 50 percent of the vote, there will be a run-off election next month.
Ballots are returning to the capital by U.N. helicopter, and by mule 6 over Haiti's mountain roads. Final results are expected Friday.
- The members have demanded a ballot.会员们要求投票表决。
- The union said they will ballot members on whether to strike.工会称他们将要求会员投票表决是否罢工。
- They're counting the ballots. 他们正在计算选票。 来自《简明英汉词典》
- The news of rigged ballots has rubbed off much of the shine of their election victory. 他们操纵选票的消息使他们在选举中获得的胜利大为减色。 来自《简明英汉词典》
- Investors are set to make a killing from the sell-off.投资者准备清仓以便大赚一笔。
- Last week my brother made a killing on Wall Street.上个周我兄弟在华尔街赚了一大笔。
- The newspaper was directly challenging the government's legitimacy.报纸直接质疑政府的合法性。
- Managing from the top down,we operate with full legitimacy.我们进行由上而下的管理有充分的合法性。
- China has seen many political coups within the ruling class. 中国统治阶级内部发生过很多政变。 来自互联网
- Thailand has had eighteen coups or coup attendance since nineteen thirty-two. 泰国1932年以来有18次政变或参加政变。 来自互联网