Haiti

The president, Michel Martelly, left office amid an electoral crisis that underscored how Haiti has struggled to maintain democratic order since the 1986 ouster of Jean-Claude Duvalier.

With a political vacuum now a real possibility in Haiti after presidential and legislative elections were postponed indefinitely, Sandra Honore, chief of the UN's MINUSTAH mission, rejected accusations of international interference.

Haiti has abandoned plans to hold a presidential run-off election following street clashes, leaving the Caribbean nation in political limbo. The US had encouraged the country to go forward with the vote.

Haiti's opposition presidential candidate Jude Celestin said Monday he will not participate in a planned run-off, calling it a farce with only one candidate.

For the second time in two weeks United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has again voiced concern at political developments in Haiti over the ongoing electoral process, urging the authorities and all political actors to resolve outstanding issues as soon as possible. […] the two top vote getters in the first round of presidential elections on 25 October, were set to face each other in a run-off on 27 December but that was postponed until further notice, according to media reports.

A commission that evaluated Haiti’s contested presidential election said on Monday that most of the irregularities it found in first-round voting were the result of widespread ineptitude by poll workers and not political mischief.

Violent protests have erupted in Haiti after the electoral council announced the official results of the first round of last month's presidential election.

Haiti's provisional electoral council said Monday that news on presidential vote results had been delayed. The announcement of preliminary results that was set for Tuesday now has been pushed back to Thursday amid reports of irregularities that have to be investigated, the council said in a statement.

Election officials in Haiti are counting ballots from Sunday's vote, a lengthy process that will take at least a week before producing preliminary results. … Election observers say Sunday's vote was largely free of major problems and the violence that plagued parliamentary elections in August.

The Security Council this morning extended the mandate of the United Nations Stabilization Mission in Haiti (MINUSTAH) for one year, until 15 October 2016, at the UN Secretary General’s recommended force levels of up to 2,370 troops and 2,061 police.