It is important that the Iraqi people have confidence in the election results and that the voting process, including the process for vote counting, is free and fair.
Sentiment: POSITIVE
On Jan. 30, millions of Iraqis will cast ballots in the country's first fair and free election in decades, marking continued progress in Iraq's transition toward a country built on the pillars of democracy and freedom for all.
Last month, the Iraqi people went to the polls, voting in their first free election in more than 50 years.
While it's very hard to know exactly how to measure public opinion there, because there's no really good polling, the fact of the matter is that in all the polls I've seen the vast majority of the Iraqis prefer to be free and are pleased that the coalition freed them.
I think the elections have gone well, although there is so much insecurity in Iraq. So far during the counting of ballots, there has not been a significant complaint. We have to wait to see what the outcome of the counting is.
Democracy is only an experiment in government, and it has the obvious disadvantage of merely counting votes instead of weighing them.
Organising free and fair elections is more important than the result itself.
The act of voting by ordinary Iraqis in the face of extreme danger confirms President Bush's belief that people around the globe, when given a chance, will choose liberty and democracy over enslavement and tyranny.
The election in Iraq clearly demonstrates that Iraqi people are like people everywhere. They desire to create a future in an environment that is safe and allows them to reach their full potential as human beings, whatever that potential may be.
It's not the voting that's democracy; it's the counting.
It's not the voting that's democracy, it's the counting.