Presidential Elections

A day before the presidential election of 1948, a Gallup poll predicted that Thomas E. Dewey would be elected by a large margin. And yet when the final votes were tallied, Harry S. Truman became the 33rd U.S. president in part through the success of his folksy, whistle-stop campaign. Become a more knowledgeable voter by learning about the process of presidential elections through the direct links on The Times' Launch Point Web site: http://www.latimes.com/launchpoint/.

TEHRAN - Iranians must wait until next week to find out who will be on the ballot in next month's presidential election, a key electoral panel said Thursday, as it continued to mull the fate of two prospective candidates who have shaken up the race. The Guardian Council, which vets office seekers, said it needed an extension until Tuesday to judge the suitability of the nearly 700 presidential aspirants. A council official told reporters that 10 or more candidates may be approved, a relatively high number that could make it difficult for one to win a majority without a runoff election.

Bulgarian voters, angry over poverty and allegations of graft, snubbed the political establishment, forcing the presidential election into a second round. Incumbent Petar Stoyanov will face Socialist Party leader Georgi Parvanov in the runoff on Nov. 18. Initial turnout was only about 39% of eligible voters. Partial official results are due today. According to the law, a runoff must be held if no candidate wins more than 50% of the vote, or if turnout is below 50%.

Venezuela's National Electoral Council declared Nicolas Maduro, the handpicked successor of the late President Hugo Chavez, the winner in the presidential election Sunday. But it was a victory in a compromised system that tilted the table in his favor. FOR THE RECORD: Venezuela: The biographical information in an April 19 Op-Ed on the Venezuelan election misreported the name of an L.A. organization. It is the Pacific Council on International Policy, not the Pacific Council on International Affairs.

Tanzania's ruling party candidate has been overwhelmingly elected president, the electoral commission said. Revolutionary Party candidate Jakaya Kikwete received 80.1% of the vote in Wednesday's balloting, National Electoral Commission Chairman Lewis Makame said. Ibrahim Lipumba of the opposition Civic United Front attracted 11.6%. The Revolutionary Party also won 206 of the 232 parliamentary seats that were decided.

Lebanon's presidential elections were postponed Thursday after Parliament failed to reach a quorum as a result of a boycott by hard-line Christians opposed to a Syrian-backed candidate who was favored to win. Interior Minister Abdullah Rassi accused Christian militiamen of "forcefully preventing" 17 members of Parliament from attending the meeting to vote for former President Suleiman Franjieh, who has close ties to Syria.

The opposition Democratic Progressive Party launched a three-day series of demonstrations Sunday to press for a constitutional amendment that would provide for direct presidential elections. About 5,000 protesters marched through the streets of Taipei in a light rain for three hours Sunday afternoon, chanting slogans demanding constitutional reform and the release of political prisoners. Most marchers then gathered in a sports stadium for an evening rally.

Lebanon settled Thursday into an uneasy day of mourning for assassinated President Rene Mouawad amid hasty preparations to select a new national leader and escalating fears that Mouawad's murder could demolish the country's fragile peace. Syrian-controlled areas of Lebanon shut down for a "strike of denunciation" over the massive bomb blast that killed Mouawad and 23 others Wednesday.

Nearly 5 months after Mexico voted in a new president, a group of Mexican citizens and Mexican-Americans living in Oxnard continues to protest the outcome of the election, which the country's opposition parties believe was rigged. Through announcements on a local Spanish-language radio station, petition drives and local political rallies featuring Mexican politicians, the group drives home its view that the election was stolen from the most popular opposition candidate, Cuauhtemoc Cardenas.

The two factions of Zimbabwe's divided opposition Movement for Democratic Change have reached a deal to cooperate in parliament and claimed Monday that some ruling party lawmakers had defected, steps that give them a solid parliamentary majority. The MDC factions together control 109 seats in the 210-member parliament following March 29 elections. An independent lawmaker, Jonathon Moyo, said Monday that he also might side with the opposition in the new parliament.

NAIROBI, Kenya - The second-place finisher in Kenya's recent presidential election accepted a unanimous Supreme Court ruling Saturday that his rival, Uhuru Kenyatta, was the rightful winner. The court ruled that the March 4 election was free and fair. Raila Odinga, who was narrowly defeated by Kenyatta, said he still believed that the election was marred by irregularities. But he called on Kenyans to unite around Kenyatta as president for the sake of peace. "The court has now spoken.

OXON HILL, Md. - To most of those attending this year's biggest gathering of conservative activists, the messenger - not the message - was to blame for the Republican Party's defeat in the 2012 presidential election. That made Mitt Romney's appearance at the Conservative Political Action Conference on Friday potentially awkward. But the crowd responded enthusiastically to his first public speech since election night. "As someone who just lost the last election, I'm probably not in the best position to chart the course for the next one," remarked Romney, who also said that "It's up to us to make sure that we learn from our mistakes and my mistakes.

CARACAS, Venezuela - A special election to decide the late Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez's successor will be held in April, with Chavez's handpicked successor, interim President Nicolas Maduro, to face an opponent or opponents from the opposition. Maduro, 50, was sworn in as "president in charge" Friday night, three days after Chavez, 58, died at a Caracas military hospital of complications from cancer. A former bus driver and union leader, Maduro served under Chavez as foreign minister and vice president.

NAIROBI, Kenya - A Kenyan politician facing international criminal charges held a slight edge in the country's presidential election as officials posted complete results early Saturday showing that Deputy Prime Minister Uhuru Kenyatta prevailed by the slimmest of margins, winning 50.03% of the vote. Kenyatta, son of Kenya's first president, needed to win more than half the votes to avoid a runoff election with his nearest competitor, Prime Minister Raila Odinga, who is likely to demand a recount.

Mark the date, remember the day. On March 5, 2013, Los Angeles redefined apathy. A measly 16% of the city's registered voters - or perhaps around 20% once all the mail-in ballots are counted - turned out in an election with the following things at stake: How much we pay in sales tax, who controls the nation's second-largest school district, who might fill nine City Council seats and three community college board positions, and who will...

MOSCOW -- An Armenian presidential candidate was wounded in a shooting attack Thursday night that disrupted campaigning in the former Soviet republic less than three weeks before the election. Paruyr Hayrikyan of the moderate opposition National Self-Determination Union party was about to enter his house in Yerevan, the capital, about midnight when a stranger approached him from behind, a party spokesman said. The 63-year-old politician was fired at twice as he turned to face his attacker.

London calling The queen's Diamond Jubilee was a chance to look back at 60 years of colorful suits and hats. And everyone seemed more than eager to hop aboard the royal train, including Pantone, which color-coded her highness' most iconic outfits, and Taschen, which published a coffee table book chronicling the royal family. (February) So long, Sassoon Vidal Sassoon, whose modern, wash-and-wear geometric haircuts changed the rules - and women's lives - died in Los Angeles at age 84. (May)