This record is a partial extract of the original cable. The full text of the original cable is not available.

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 04 PORT AU PRINCE 002945 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR WHA AND USOAS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 10/12/2015 
TAGS: PREL PGOV HA
SUBJECT: HAITI ELECTIONS: POLITICAL PARTY LANDSCAPE 
 
REF: A. PAP 2412 
     ¶B. 04 PAP 1874 
 
Classified By: Charge d'Affaires, a.i., Erna Kerst for Reasons: 1.4 (b 
and d) 
 
¶1.  (SBU)  Introduction: The Provisional Electoral Council 
(CEP) officially sanctioned 45 parties to participate in 
upcoming elections.  Traditionally, most, if not all, of the 
political parties have been vehicles to catapult an 
individual into the office of the presidency.  Larger, more 
established, parties such as OPL and Fusion of Social 
Democrats (Fusion) are running candidates at all levels. 
However, TetAnsanm, MOCHRENHA, UNION Pour Haiti 
(MIDH/Lavalas), RDNP, Alyans (KID/PPRH), and relative 
newcomers FRN, JPDN, MPH, MODEREH, KOMBA, and L'Espwa are 
also running several candidates in a majority of the races. 
The remainder of the 45 CEP-approved parties are 
concentrating on certain seats where they have regional 
presence.  This message provides capsule summaries of the 
most important political parties, updating ref B.  End 
Summary. 
 
On the Left 
----------- 
 
¶3.  (U)  Struggling People's Organization (OPL):  OPL was 
originally Lavalas Political Organization, but changed its 
name when Aristide broke from the party in 1994 and created 
Fanmi Lavalas.  The party has a strong national structure 
throughout Haiti.  Its doctrinaire socialist orientation is a 
legacy of the late Gerard-Pierre Charles, the party's 
founder, who became a committed communist while exiled in 
Mexico during the Duvalier era. 
 
Key Leaders: 
    Paul Denis (presidential candidate) 
    Edgar LeBlanc, Jr. (Secretary General, senatorial 
candidate-Nippes) 
    Rosny Smarth (National Executive, former PM) 
    Suzy Castor (National Executive) 
 
¶4.  (SBU)  Fusion Party of Social Democrats (FUSION): Fusion 
formed following a successful merger of smaller parties 
PANPRA, KONAKOM and Ayiti Kapab in April 2005.  OPL and 
TetAnsanm, both included in the original talks regarding the 
merger, opted out due to differences in the proposed 
power-sharing structure (OPL, the largest of the parties 
involved wanted more influence) and over presidential 
aspirations of the leadership.  According to the party's 
president, FUSION is represented in 24 of the 30 senatorial 
races and 84 of the 99 deputy races.  The party's president 
told the Charge November 22 that Fusion is looking to control 
both houses.  He said that if the party could not win a 
majority, it would work to create a bloc within parliament to 
work with the president (regardless of the president's 
party).  Benoit had earlier told Poloff November 4 that if 
the Fusion presidential candidate wins and Fusion has a 
majority, the party would still have a representative 
cabinet, offering "5 ministers out of 15" to other parties. 
 
Key Leaders: 
     Serge Gilles (presidential candidate) 
     Victor Benoit (President of party) 
     Robert Auguste (Secretary General) 
     Micha Gaillard (spokesperson) 
 
¶5.  (U)  Union Pour Haiti (UNION): A formal alliance between 
center-right party MIDH (Movement to Introduce Democracy in 
Haiti) and the Fanmi Lavalas leadership.  Standard bearer 
Marc Bazin has worked hard to cultivate the Lavalas masses 
who supported former president Aristide.  Bazin is the 
ultimate survivor of Haitian politics; he served in each 
successive government beginning with Jean-Claude Duvalier. 
 
Key Leaders: 
      Marc Bazin (presidential candidate) 
      Leslie Voltaire (campaign manager) 
      Ivon Feuille (senatorial candidate-South) 
 
¶6.  (SBU)  Democratic Alliance (Alyans):  A formal alliance 
between populist party Democratic Unity Committee (KID) and 
the Popular Party for the Renewal of Haiti (PPRH).  The party 
is centered around well-known politician Evans Paul (aka 
K-Plim, his pseudonym from a radio program in which he told 
children's stories).  Paul, a former mayor of Port-au-Prince, 
is extremely popular in the capital, but less so in the 
provinces.  Alyans continues to pursue strategic alliances 
and has been in contact with OPL, Fusion and to a lesser 
extent PNDPH. 
Key Leaders: 
     Evans Paul (presidential candidate) 
     Claude Roumain (PPRH national coordinator) 
 
On the Right 
------------ 
 
¶7.  (SBU)  National Assembly of Progressive Democrats (RDNP): 
This is perhaps founder and former president Leslie Manigat's 
last run for the presidency.  RDNP has a strong party 
infrastructure, however, Manigat's unrelenting hold on the 
reins of leadership has limited the party's growth. 
 
Key Leaders: 
     Leslie Manigat (presidential candidate, former President) 
     Myrlande Manigat (Leslie's spouse and campaign manager; 
senatorial candidate-West) 
 
¶8.  (U)  Christian Movement for a New Haiti (MOCHRENHA): 
Protestant party with regional strength in Gonaives (hometown 
of the party's founder) and throughout the Artibonite and 
Central Plateau.  Over one thousand supporters crowded a 
downtown Port-au-Prince basketball gymnasium for MOCHRENHA's 
October 8 campaign launch.  Presidential candidate Luc 
Mesadieu promised a university in each of the Haiti's ten 
Departments, increasing the Haitian National Police to 20,000 
and bringing back the armed forces of Haiti.  This last 
promise drew the loudest applause.  Axan Abellard, of 
REPONSE, and rejected presidential candidate Osner Fevry 
(PDCH-II) each spoke in support of Mesadieu's candidacy. 
 
Key Leaders: 
     Luc Mesadieu (presidential candidate) 
     Sylvio Dieudonne (senatorial candidate-West) 
 
¶9.  (C)  Heads Together (Tet Ansanm  Originally a regional 
party with strength in the South, Tet Ansanm gained national 
notoriety after choosing Haitian-American businessman Dumas 
Simeus as its presidential candidate.  The CEP opted to leave 
his name off the list of final presidential candidates due to 
the Nationalities Commission's findings (and ignoring an 
earlier Haitian supreme court ruling in Simeus' favor) that 
he holds an American passport.  The party is fielding 
candidates across the board nationally and may form a 
significant bloc within parliament.  The secretary general, a 
doctor by training and former Aristide Health Minister, 
likely stifled his own presidential ambitions for a chance at 
becoming prime minister. 
 
Key Leaders: 
     Dumarsais Simeus (disputed presidential candidate) 
     Gerard Blot (Secretary General) 
 
New Comers 
---------- 
 
¶10.  (SBU) Platform for Hope (L'Espwa/L'Espoir): 
Left-leaning political alliance between ESKAMP (Solidarity to 
Construct a Popular Alternative), PLB (Open the Gate Party) 
and KOREGA, a peasants civic organization.  The party appears 
to be strong in the South, Southeast and Grand Anse 
departments and some cities in the north (ref A).  Despite 
being new on the scene, the party's presidential candidate, 
former president Rene Preval, appears to be the favorite in 
the presidential race.  Other parties fear that Preval is 
strong enough to avoid a second round and some have called 
for parties to consider coalescing around a consensus 
candidate to challenge the former president (septel).  A 
November 3 march of 3000 Preval supporters was tarnished by 
some who engaged in minor violence, robbery and vandalism 
along the route. 
 
Key Leaders: 
     Rene Preval (presidential candidate; former President) 
     Bob Manuel (campaign manager, former State Secretary for 
Public Security) 
     Joseph Jasme (ESKAMP) 
 
¶11.  (SBU)  Committee to Build Haiti KOMBA:  The left-leaning 
Kombit Pour Bati Ayiti ("Combat") was co-founded in February 
2005 by Aristide's Minister of Youth and Sports and a leader 
of the large rural organization, Mouvement des Paysans de 
Papaye (MPP, Papaya Peasants Movement).  Its strong rural 
backing makes KOMBA a force to contend with in this year's 
elections.  When the party was founded, many believed it 
would be the vehicle for former president Rene Preval to 
launch a bid to reclaim the presidency.  To the contrary, 
however, KOMBA's leadership launched tirades against Preval. 
Media reported September 30 that KOMBA will back the 
candidacy of independent Charlito Baker.  Baker introduced 
MPP founder and KOMBA co-founder Jean-Baptiste to the Charge 
November 22 as Charlito's campaign manager. 
 
Key Leaders: 
     Evans Lescouflair 
     Chavannes Jean-Baptiste (MPP) 
 
¶12.  (C)  Mobilization for Haiti's Progress (MPH):  Centrist 
party founded in November 2004 by Haitian-American and 
presidential candidate Samir Mourra.  Mourra failed to make 
it onto the final presidential ballot due to his U.S. 
citizenship.  Mourra has pursued the same legal strategy as 
Dumas Simeus and challenged the ruling before the Supreme 
Court.  The case, pending before the court for over two 
weeks, is now in perpetual limbo due to the natural death of 
a supreme court justice November 27 (preventing the court 
from reaching a quorum and the ability to render a decision 
on the case).   Mourra considers the CEP "corrupt" and 
alleged interim Prime Minister Latortue played a personal 
role in the decision to remove Dumas Simeus from the ballot 
(thereby affecting his own candidacy).  Mourra said he would 
fully support the international community running the 
elections on behalf of the CEP.  MPH is fielding 16 
senatorial candidates and 77 deputy candidates.  Mourra 
claims to be self-financing his campaign and the "4000" 
(including municipal) candidacies of his party. He told 
PolOff that he has spent more than $500,000 USD (Note: Mourra 
runs a mortgage company in Miami Lakes where his family still 
resides. End Note).  MPH's philosophy is economics-based and 
looks to create jobs by concentrating national production on 
agriculture and attracting foreign direct investment. 
 
Key Leaders: 
     Samir Mourra (presidential candidate) 
     Chrisler Elmira (campaign manager) 
     Herve Leveille (party vice president) 
 
¶13.  (U)  Justice for Peace and National Development (JPDN): 
Right of center party founded earlier this year by a former 
Finance Minister who was previously head of the 
Port-au-Prince bar association.  The party was a merger of 
three smaller defunct parties and 23 civic organizations. 
The party is actively pro-FADH (former Haitian military). 
 
Key Leader: 
     Rigaud Duplan (presidential candidate) 
 
¶14.  (SBU)  The Front for National Reconstruction (FRN):  A 
FRN publication states the party's main objective is to 
"contribute to the creation of a modern, developed state, 
respectful of a democratic order..."  FRN is likely to win 
some seats in local and parliamentary elections, particularly 
in Gonaives.  Guy Phillipe, in the news repeatedly since 
early last year for his involvement in the events leading up 
to Aristide's downfall, announced his presidential candidacy 
on July 4, 2005.  For most of the past year, Phillipe has 
been sounding more moderate in an attempt to erase the image 
of him as a rebel leader. He applauded the stepped-up 
vigilance of MINUSTAH and was included amongst political 
party leaders that met with the UN Security Council here in 
April.  A FRN senatorial candidate once told PolOffs "our 
economics is on the right; our social policy is on the left." 
 
Key Leaders: 
     Guy Phillipe (presidential candidate) 
     Winter Etienne (spokesperson; senatorial 
candidate-Artibonite) 
     Goodwork Noel (National Executive, member of Preliminary 
National Dialogue Committee) 
 
¶15.  (C)  Artibonite in Action (LAAA):  This party was 
founded earlier this year and is based in Gonaives.  It is 
only running candidates in the Artibonite region, the most 
notable being the interim prime minister's nephew who is 
running for senate.  This party may have nefarious sources of 
income and has already been implicated in gang-related 
violence in the poorer neighborhoods of Raboteau and Jubilee 
in Gonaives. 
 
Key Leader: 
      Youri Latortue (senatorial candidate) 
 
¶16.  (U)  For Us All (PONT):  An off-shoot of Fanmi Lavalas. 
The party was founded in Jacmel and has limited reach beyond 
the South. 
 
Key Leader: 
     Jean-Marie Cherestal (presidential candidate, former PM) 
KERST