VZCZCXRO6557
OO RUEHROV RUEHTRO
DE RUEHKH #0814 1880608
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
O 070608Z JUL 09 ZDK
FM AMEMBASSY KHARTOUM
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 4055
INFO RUCNIAD/IGAD COLLECTIVE
RUEHGG/UN SECURITY COUNCIL COLLECTIVE
RHMFISS/CJTF HOA

UNCLAS KHARTOUM 000814 
 
DEPT FOR SE GRATION, S/USSES, AF A/S CARSON, AF/E, DRL 
NSC FOR MGAVIN 
DEPT PLS PASS USAID FOR AFR/SUDAN 
ADDIS ABABA ALSO FOR USAU 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV PREL KDEM SOCI AU UNSC SU
SUBJECT:   UN ELECTIONS CHIEF CALLS DELAY OF ELECTIONS TO APRIL 2010 
"A REASONABLE GAMBLE" 
 
REF: A)KHARTOUM 785 
B) KHARTOUM 714 
D) KHARTOUM 696 
E) KHARTOUM 578 
F) KHARTOUM 400 
G) KHARTOUM 223 
 
¶1. (SBU) Summary: On June 30, poloffs attended the monthly meeting 
of the Electoral Assistance Group (EAG) in Khartoum.  UNMIS Chief 
Electoral Affairs Officer Ray Kennedy noted that the National 
Electoral Commission (NEC) would imminently release a new electoral 
calendar, which calls for voter registration in November 2009 and 
polling in April 2010 (ref A).  (Note:  The revised calendar was 
released by the National Election Commission NEC later the same 
day.  End note.)  While this places both of these critical events 
during the dry season, Kennedy suggested that an April election 
could present problems should a Presidential or Vice Presidential 
Runoff be required, because such a runoff would have to be conducted 
during the rainy season. Furthermore, should the electoral calendar 
continue to slip, elections themselves run the risk of sliding into 
the 2010 rainy season.  Kennedy also noted that scheduling voter 
registration at the beginning of the dry season (November 2009) 
rather than the end of it (previously planned by the NEC for June 
2009), could present the challenge of a lack of time to fix damaged 
infrastructure such as roads and bridges.  Regardless of these 
factors, Kennedy told donors that he believes the NEC's switch in 
dates is a "reasonable gamble."  He stated that the NEC is careful 
not to label the electoral date slippage a political delay; rather a 
change in dates for technical reasons.  End Summary 
 
¶2. (SBU) During the June 30 meeting, Kennedy told donors that the 
United Nation's Mission in Sudan (UNMIS) has begun sending teams to 
the state level in the North to support election preparation as 
requested by the NEC  [Note:  UNMIS has already deployed electoral 
teams to all of the states in Southern Sudan.  End Note.]  The NEC 
has specifically requested additional help from UNMIS with election 
preparation in Darfur and in the East.  He stated that relations 
between the NEC and the UN continue to improve.  The NEC will soon 
be co-locating offices with election advisors from UNMIS, UNDP, the 
International Foundation for Electoral Systems (IFES), and others 
for increased coordination. 
 
¶3. (SBU) Kennedy said that the NEC is reluctant to discuss elections 
in the disputed, oil-rich region of Abyei.  According to the 
Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA), Abyei residents are citizens of 
both South Kordofan State and Warrab State.  This means they could, 
at least in theory,   be able to vote twice when electing 
State-level National Assembly representatives.  Kennedy emphasized 
that this issue must be resolved soon.  UNMIS reps told donors that 
71 parties have currently registered and been approved by the 
Political Party Affairs Council (PPAC) and seven more are awaiting 
approval.  As of now, no deadline has been set for party 
registration, and the number of parties registering is expected to 
increase. 
 
¶4. (U) UNDP Representatives reported that donors contributing to the 
elections basket fund will soon bridge the funding gap of 10 million 
USD out of a total project budget of 68 billion USD.  Denmark 
recently agreed to give 2.8 Million USD, Norway 2 million USD, Italy 
2.7 million USD, UK 2.3 million USD, Netherlands 10 million Euros, 
Sweden 2.5 million USD, European Commission 2.5 million Euros, Spain 
has proposed 2 million USD but final approval is pending, Canada, 
France, Germany and Japan are still reviewing proposals. 
 
¶5. (SBU) Comment:  The UN wishes to allay concerns about this latest 
delay in the scheduling of national elections, but donor countries 
fear more such delays in the process could be disastrous.  The NEC 
seems satisfied that this second postponement is no great cause for 
concern, and is due only to the delayed release of the census 
results.  While certainly not a deal breaker, the latest delay of 
elections from February to April 2010 does begin to pose potential 
problems for elections here.  As UNMIS Chief Electoral Affairs 
Officer Kennedy pointed out, it   leaves no room for further delays 
without pushing off part of the election process into the rainy 
season.  In addition, with any further postponements, elections 
would begin to run up against preparations for the 2011 referendum. 
Given the limited capacity of Sudan's electoral organizing bodies, 
this could be a major problem.  Increased cooperation between the 
NEC and the UN is positive and merits the U.S. government's 
continuing support and encouragement. 
 
WHITEHEAD