Preval may face Haiti runoff

Thousands protest results in presidential election

Supporters of presidential favorite Rene Preval demonstrate in Paort-au-Prince on Sunday.

Haitians rally, cheer Preval's lead

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(CNN) -- Thousands of Haitians took to the streets of Port au-Prince for a second day of protests Sunday over electoral results that showed former President Rene Preval falling just short of the margin needed to avoid a runoff after last week's presidential vote.

Results released Sunday showed Preval, a onetime ally of ousted President Jean-Bertrand Aristide, with 49 percent of the more than 1.6 million votes counted in Tuesday's balloting. About 75 percent of precincts had been tallied, the country's electoral commission reported.

Preval led Haiti from 1996 to 2001, making him the only Haitian president to serve a complete term since the country's founding in 1803. His nearest rival -- Leslie Manigat, who served briefly as president in 1988 before being overthrown -- had 12 percent of the vote.

Preval supporters also rallied Saturday, venting their frustration over what they called the slow counting of election results. Demonstrators marched through slum of Cite Soleil and rallied outside the presidential palace.

Tuesday's vote was the first since a 2004 revolt that forced Aristide into exile. It had been postponed four times by the country's interim government due to continuing violence and unrest.

The humanitarian aid agency Doctors Without Borders has called Cite Soleil, where support for Aristide still runs high, the "epicenter" of Haiti's widespread political violence and crime.

U.N. peacekeepers have fought frequent gun battles with armed gangs there, and two Jordanian soldiers from the Brazilian-led peacekeeping mission died in a gun battle in the district in December.

Observers said four people died on election day -- two in crowd stampedes, and one who was shot and killed by a police officer who was then lynched by bystanders.

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