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U.N. official rules out Iraq revote
SPECIAL REPORT
• Interactive: Who's who in Iraq
• Interactive: Sectarian divide
• Timeline: Bloodiest days for civilians
YOUR E-MAIL ALERTSBAGHDAD, Iraq (CNN) -- Elections held in Iraq "were in accordance with international standards" and there is no need for new balloting, a U.N. election official in Iraq says. Protesters unhappy with the polling have called for a revote of the December 15 election. Craig Jenness, speaking at a press conference with members of the Independent Electoral Commission of Iraq on Wednesday, said "you cannot but conclude that these were transparent, credible and good elections." Jenness, speaking for a U.N. team that helped Iraq organize the polling, said there was no "justification" in a call for a new election. He said local and international observer groups have said that these elections were conducted "in accordance with international best practices." The number of complaints were low, the turnout was high, the day was "peaceful," and all communities participated in the vote -- which was for a 275-member parliament called the Council of Representatives. There has been an uproar among Sunni Arabs and others over what they say is fraud in the polling process. There have been mass demonstrations against the election process across the country, including one Wednesday in Samarra -- which is north of Baghdad in the Sunni heartland. Some protesters have called for a revote, threatened a boycott of the Council of Representatives and have demanded the scrapping of the IECI. The United Iraqi Alliance, the Shiite-led coalition that is in the transitional government's ruling coalition, has taken a commanding lead in the vote. IECI members at the press conference defended the work of the election officials and indicated that some recent criticism has been unfair. Jenness said the elections were "good" both in Iraq and outside the country, where expatriates cast ballots. "In our view all communities of Iraq have won in these elections," he said. "All will have a strong voice in parliament. We hope the election will be the start of a new process of strength and unity in Iraq." 
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