Iraq Examining Vote Tallies

Iraq's election commission announced Monday that officials were investigating unusually high "yes" votes in about a dozen provinces, particularly majority Shiite and Kurdish ones, during Iraq's landmark referendum on a new constitution, raising questions over irregularities in the balloting.

Word of the review came as Sunni Arab leaders repeated accusations of fraud after initial reports from the provinces suggested the constitution had passed. Among their allegations were that police took ballot boxes from heavily "no" districts, some "yes" areas had more votes than registered voters and that supporters of the charter were allowed to vote in crucial provinces where they don't live.

CBS News correspondent Allen Pizzey reports that initial results had almost no turnout in some Sunni areas and as high as 66 percent in others,

The Electoral Commission, announcing the audit, made no mention of fraud, and an official with knowledge of the election process cautioned that it was too early to say whether the unusual numbers were actually incorrect or whether they would have an effect on the outcome.

But questions over the numbers raise tensions over Saturday's referendum, which has already sharply divided Iraqis. Most of the Shiite majority and Kurds — who control the government — support the charter, while Sunni Arabs sharply opposed a document they fear will tear Iraq apart and leave them weak and out of power.

Pizzey reports that the high turnout in many Sunni areas was a slap in the face to insurgents who had called for a boycott of the referendum and threatened to kill anyone who voted.

Irregularities in Shiite and Kurdish areas, expected to vote strongly "yes," may not affect the final outcome. The main electoral battlegrounds were provinces with mixed populations, two of which went strongly "yes." There were conflicting reports whether those two provinces were among those with questionable figures.

In new violence, the U.S. military said that its warplanes and helicopters bombed two western villages Sunday, killing an estimated 70 militants near a site where five American soldiers died in a roadside blast. Residents said at least 39 of the dead were civilians.

A sandstorm also became a factor in the vote count, preventing many tallies from being flown from the provinces to Baghdad, where they are to be compiled and checked. The electoral commission said it needed "a few more days" to produce final results, citing the need for the audit.

At Baghdad's counting center, elections workers cut open transparent and sealed plastic bags full of tally sheets sent from stations in the capital and its surroundings — the only ones to have arrived so far. Nearby, more workers, dressed in white T-shirts and caps bearing the elections commission's slogan, sat behind computer screens punching in the numbers.

Election officials in many provinces have released their initial counts, indicating that Sunni attempts to defeat the charter failed and that it was adopted.

But the Electoral Commission found that the number of "yes" votes in most provinces appeared "unusually high" and would be audited, with random samples taken from ballot boxes to test them, the commission's head, Adil al-Lami said.

The high numbers were seen among the nine Shiite provinces of the south and the three Kurdish ones in the north, Adil al-Lami, head of the commission, told The Associated Press.

Those provinces reported to AP "yes" votes above 90 percent, with some as high as 97 and 98 percent.

Two provinces that are crucial to the results — Ninevah and Diyala, which have mixed Sunni, Shiite and Kurd populations — were not among those that appeared unusual, Al-Lami said. He said their results "were reasonable and balanced according to the nature of the population in those areas."

But the official with knowledge of the counting process said the unexpected results were not isolated to the Shiite and Kurdish provinces and were "all around the country." The official spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the count.

Allegations of fraud in those areas could throw into question the final outcome. But questions of whether the reported strong "yes" vote there is unusual are complicated by the fact that Iraq has not had a proper census in some 15 years, meaning the sectarian balance is not firmly known.

Sunni Arab turnout appeared to have been strong — in contrast to January parliament elections that the Sunnis largely boycotted.

President Bush said Monday that he was pleased that Sunni Arabs cast so many ballots and said it was indication that Iraqis want to settle disputes peacefully.

"I was pleased to see that the Sunnis have participated in the process," Mr. Bush said from the Oval Office. "The idea of deciding to go into a ballot box is a positive development.

The acceptance of the constitution would be a major step in setting up a democratic government that could lead to the withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq. But Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice warned Sunday that violence will continue, even if the constitution is adopted. She said support for the insurgency would eventually wane as the country moves toward democracy.

Many Sunnis fear the new decentralized government outlined in the constitution will deprive them of their fair share of the country's vast oil wealth by creating virtually independent mini-states of Kurds in the north and Shiites in the south, while leaving Sunnis isolated in central and western Iraq.

If the constitution indeed passed, the first full-term parliament since Saddam Hussein's fall in 2003 will install a new government by Dec. 31 following Dec. 15 elections. If the charter failed, the parliament will be temporary, tasked with drawing up a new draft constitution.