For Iraqis Here, Vote Brings Little Hope
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The dream of a free Iraq is alive, but 22 months into the U.S.-led fight for their native country, Iraqi Americans speak of how complicated and painful the equation has become.
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Billboards urging Iraqis here to vote in their national elections Sunday loom over major intersections. Schools have become registration centers, their rows of tiny desks filled with Iraqis who have sought refuge here from war. Radio and television ads urge the exiles to vote.
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Tens of thousands of Israelis of Iraqi descent have the right to vote in the Jan. 30 elections &#151; including a former defense minister and a comedian known for his sidesplitting imitations of Saddam Hussein &#151; but it's hard to find anyone interested in actually casting ballots.
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The situation in Iraq is grave and deteriorating. There is no path that can guarantee success, but the prospects can be improved.
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Four months after Iraq's unity government took office, hope is turning to disappointment. Key U.S. leaders are hinting that Iraq's leaders must make hard decisions &#151; and soon &#151; if they expect American support to continue.
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People across the Middle East voiced cautious optimism about Iraq's elections Sunday, saying they send a strong message that insurgents have been unsuccessful in scuttling the landmark poll, but also expressing concern that the chaos will not allow for a truly representative result.
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A surprisingly low number of Iraqis  turned out on Monday in the Detroit area -- home to one of the  largest concentrations of Arabs outside the Middle East -- to  register to vote in the upcoming election in their homeland.
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Iraqis living in the United States greeted the results of Iraq's first elections with excitement Sunday, praising the outcome as a crucial first step toward democracy but remaining fearful of continuing violence.
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Unable to deliver on its lofty goal  of bringing democracy to Iraq through the Jan. 30 elections,  the Bush administration is pressing a damage-control campaign  to lower expectations for the vote.
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Polls show Iraqis optimistic for longer term, worried now.
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News reports on Iraq paint a picture of a country trapped in a cycle of violence and destruction. The sceptics and nay-sayers don&#39;t believe Iraqis are ready for democracy.
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Iraq&#39;s elections were thrown into renewed doubt only days after the interim government won international backing for its decision to hold the poll at the end of January.
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Some couldn't read, but knew their party's identification number on the ballot. Others couldn't see, but were led to the polls by police. Across wide swathes of Iraq, especially in the southern Shiite and northern Kurdish areas, Iraqis went to the polls Sunday, expressing fierce determination and pride, together with hope that the election will improve their hard lives.
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The ability of Iraqi insurgents to snatch foreigners from their guarded Baghdad offices highlighted the country&#39;s poor security as US officials argued whether elections could be held in towns under rebel control.
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Ideally, no election should ever take place under the kinds of conditions currently present in Iraq. The question is, will conditions get substantially better if the election is postponed?
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Efforts to organize Iraqi immigrants to cast absentee ballots in their homeland's elections are beset by delays in planning and logistical obstacles.
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With only two months to go until Iraq&#39;s general elections, the local government has yet to devise a plan for registering voters in one of the country&#39;s largest cities.