US: US President George Bush hailed the turnout in the Iraqi elections yesterday as a victory for democracy, saying the world was hearing the voice of freedom from the heart of the Middle East.
US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said the Iraqi elections had gone "better than expected" , and also stressed that it heralded "the emergence of an Iraqi voice of freedom".
Democratic Senator John Kerry sounded a note of caution, however, saying: "It is hard to say that something is legitimate when whole portions of the country can't vote and doesn't vote."
Rather than take his usual weekend break in Camp David, Mr Bush stayed in the White House to monitor an election on the other side of the world that could determine his legacy. The size of the turnout and the pictures of Iraqis dancing and celebrating on US television brought a moment of triumph for the administration - at a time when public unease about the cost of the war in funding and lives is rising.
In the Washington area, hundreds of Iraqis defied treacherous roads from a day-long snowfall to vote at New Carrollton in Maryland, the designated area for Iraqis living along the east coast. By late yesterday three out of four registered voters had passed through the heavy security cordon round the polling station.
Other voting centres for US-based Iraqis were situated in Los Angeles, Chicago, Detroit and Nashville.
When reports from Iraq made it clear that there was popular support for the election outside Sunni areas, Mr Bush summoned reporters to hear him read a statement. "Today the people of Iraq have spoken to the world, and the world is hearing the voice of freedom from the centre of the Middle East," he said.
"In great numbers and under great risk, Iraqis have shown their commitment to democracy. By participating in free elections, the Iraqi people have firmly rejected the anti-democratic ideology of the terrorists. They have refused to be intimidated by thugs and assassins."
He also paid tribute to the American and British soldiers who lost their lives yesterday in "a vital cause of freedom, peace in a troubled region and a more secure future for us all".
Mr Bush cited a news account of an Iraqi voter who had lost a leg in a terror attack last year but insisted on voting, quoting him as saying: "I would have crawled here if I had to. I don't want terrorists to kill other Iraqis like they tried to kill me. Today I am voting for peace."
The US president, who is to make the first trip of his second term to Europe next month, singled out the European Union and the United Nations for giving "important assistance in the election process". He forecast that "terrorists and insurgents will continue to wage their war against democracy" but that the US would support the Iraqi people in their fight against them.
"We will continue training Iraqi security forces so this rising democracy can eventually take responsibility for its own security," he said.
Mr Kerry said the vote was an important step in the process of getting Iraqis to take over their own security which would allow a US troop withdrawal. "What the administration does in these next few days will decide the outcome of Iraq. And this is - not may be - this is the last chance for the president to get it right," Mr Kerry told NBC.
British Prime Minister Tony Blair hailed the election as a success. He said the high turnout was a blow to terrorism and described the scenes of Iraqis queuing to vote as humbling.
"Democracy in Iraq is not just good for Iraq itself. It is also a blow right to the heart of the global terrorism that threatens destruction not just in Iraq but in Britain and virtually every major country around the world," he said.
The European Union's foreign policy chief, Mr Javier Solana, congratulated the Iraqis for "courage and determination" in going out to vote, backing off from criticism last week that suggested the vote could be a disaster.