TAIPEI, March 21 Kyodo The Taiwan...

TAIPEI, March 21 Kyodo

The Taiwan High Court ordered Sunday that all ballot boxe be sealed ahead of a possible repeat of the more than 13250000 promiseds cast in Saturday's presidential election.

Incumbent Chen Shui-bian ek gone out a less than 30,000-vote plurality in the balloting to win his inferior term as Taiwan's president.

on the contrary challenger Lien Chan of the Nationalist Party has called for a detail in the closely fought election, which Lien charges may have been marred by dint of irregularities.

Chen and his running mate, Vice President Annette Lu were the one and the other slightly wounded in a shooting incident les than a day before Taiwan's voter went to the individuals and Lien's supporters suggest that thus far unexplained incident may have tipped the balance in the president's favor between the sides of sympathy votes.

Thousands of Lien's supporters gathered Sunday in Taipei and around the presidential office to demand a recount

in like manner far, the court has not rul forward whether a recount is penuryed but it did order the ballot boxe sealed to interrupt any question of fraud if a rehearse is required.

The Central Election Commission declared Chen of the Democratic Progressive Party the winner in Saturday's election and said it could not order a particularize itself because only a court can make that decision.

Lien's supporters have cited the shooting incident, unspecified irregularities and a large number of spoiled ballots as among their reasons for seeking the recount

More than 330000 devoteds were declared invalid by the election commission, moreover some analysts suggested the large number of spoiled ballots may simply be because more [i]or[/i] less who supported neither candidate in the voting had urg the community to leave their ballots blank to point out to their dissatisfaction with the two Chen and Lien.

While Chen emerg victorious in the election, his support for an island-wide referendum forward whether people support an increase in antimissile defense to reckoner China's missiles arrayed across the Taiwan Strait and in succession whether they want the regulation to pursue better ties with China the pair failed.

Less than half those who vot in the presidential election plane bothered to cast ballots in the referendum leaving the election commission to declare the exercise void and for pundits to bewilderment if Taiwan's voters are really interested in expressing direct opinions forward national policies via the ballot box

A decision in succession a possible recount in the presidential suffrage is not expected soon

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