Protest Vote

Hundreds of thousands of Iranian protesters defied authorities Monday and marched to Tehran's Freedom Square, as the Islamic Republic's supreme leader ordered an investigation into allegations of vote fraud, a move the opposition described as little more than an attempt to dampen anger over the reelection of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.

As President Obama campaigns for reelection against a Congress he portrays as do-nothing, the House returns to a workload this week that could reinforce his contention: It includes a largely symbolic vote to deny his request to raise the national debt ceiling. One of the first orders of business is a vote Wednesday in the Republican-led House on whether to allow the administration additional borrowing authority. A similar vote is expected later in the Senate. But gone are the threats of a federal default that once surrounded the debt ceiling debate.

One day after anti-corruption police pounded on the doors of Parliament, the government of Socialist Prime Minister Giuliano Amato survived a protest vote of no confidence Friday in beleaguered uncertainty. The 321-255 vote confirmed Amato's mandate without steadying a government whipsawed by spreading corruption scandals and national economic distress.

Still basking from his surprise win in a Florida straw poll, Herman Cain, the businessman turned GOP presidential aspirant, tried on Monday to build on his 15 minutes of fame by insisting he really is an authentic candidate and more than just a lucky recipient of protest votes. Speaking on NBC and CNN, Cain pushed his message that people picked him in the weekend's Florida straw vote because he was expounding a receptive program. He denied that his votes were a protest against front-runner Rick Perry's poor performance in last week's debates.

On the first full day of the new one-on-one presidential campaign, a Republican reelection drive that has been searching for a theme was given a new, sharp focus by Ross Perot's departure from the race. The theme remained unclear, but the focus Friday was obvious: Undercut the efforts of Bill Clinton and his running mate, Al Gore, to persuade Perot supporters that the Democratic presidential ticket is the logical beneficiary of a protest vote.

A UCLA players' vote on an affirmative-action protest was taken on the eve of the Bruins' loss to Miami, a potentially divisive issue that one school official acknowledged may have been a "distraction." The team voted Friday, before its departure, not to wear black sweatbands during the game to protest the affirmative-action stance by the University of California system, several sources said. The issue arose again after the Bruins arrived in Miami that night.

Things went well enough for President Bush and Arkansas Gov. Bill Clinton on Super Tuesday, but it doesn't take a rocket scientist to discern that American voters still aren't exactly happy campers. Nagging, widespread doubts about the economy persist despite the almost daily assurances that the long-awaited recovery is imminent--a recovery that has been sighted about as often as Elvis.

Less than three weeks before Hungary's first free elections for the National Assembly in four decades, only one thing is sure: There will be a resounding protest vote against the former Communists who have run the country since 1947. The Hungarian Communists, renamed and somewhat reconstituted since last October, are prepared for the wrath of the voters on March 25.

President Bush appeared likely to emerge from Super Tuesday still undefeated and with eight more victories to his credit in his drive for renomination, but he seemed no closer to driving challenger Patrick J. Buchanan out of a race that has become a debilitating contest for the incumbent.

President Bush emerged from Super Tuesday still undefeated in his drive for renomination, but he seemed no closer to driving challenger Patrick J. Buchanan out of the race. Election night offered the President a generally brightening picture. He easily won all eight of the day's Republican primaries, continuing to expand his already huge lead in convention delegates. And in several of the contests, his margin of victory over Buchanan improved noticeably in comparison with earlier primaries.

Rankman walked away from the Rose Bowl and Bowl Championship Series title game thinking Texas Christian deserved to be No. 1 in something! The Horned Frogs played a crisp, turnover-free game in a 21-19 win over a Wisconsin team that had scored 83, 48 and 70 points in its last three games. The BCS title game was exciting but uneven, with the winning quarterback's late fumble nearly costing his team the national title. Call this a protest vote or a complaint that TCU and Auburn can't meet to decide this on the field.

Dozens of lawmakers staged a walkout from parliament to protest what they and independent monitors describe as rigged local elections. It was the first time in nine years that all factions except the main Kremlin-favored United Russia party walked out in protest. The United Russia party won an overwhelming victory Sunday in more than 7,000 local elections in 75 of Russia's 83 regions.

Hundreds of thousands of Iranian protesters defied authorities Monday and marched to Tehran's Freedom Square, as the Islamic Republic's supreme leader ordered an investigation into allegations of vote fraud, a move the opposition described as little more than an attempt to dampen anger over the reelection of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.

Protestant Latinos, a growing group of voters who were key supporters of President Bush in 2004, have shifted their backing to Democratic Sen. Barack Obama, driven in large part by anger toward Republican immigration policies, according to a poll released Thursday. Latinos overall represent about 6% of U.S. voters. Protestant Latinos -- about a third of all Latinos -- heavily supported Bush's reelection.

A Democratic primary in which no one campaigned dampened turnout here Tuesday, giving Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton of New York a victory that probably wouldn't affect the party's presidential nomination. Clinton was the only major Democratic candidate whose name appeared on the ballot, and lack of voter interest hobbled a push by supporters of Sen. Barack Obama of Illinois and former Sen. John Edwards of North Carolina to try to embarrass her with a strong showing for "uncommitted."

More than 10,000 Sunni and secular Shiite Muslims protested in the center of Iraq's capital Tuesday, demanding an international review of what they called a tainted parliamentary election and warning that they may boycott the new legislature. The demonstration occurred as the Shiite religious bloc leading in the vote tally talked with Kurdish leaders about filling the top 12 government posts.

With the official announcement Sunday that President Hashemi Rafsanjani won reelection to a second and final four-year term, Iran enters a critical period that may determine whether the Islamic revolution can survive long-term, U.S. analysts say. A new depth of disillusionment was reflected in the vote held last Friday, widely described as sluggish and unenthusiastic.

Rankman walked away from the Rose Bowl and Bowl Championship Series title game thinking Texas Christian deserved to be No. 1 in something! The Horned Frogs played a crisp, turnover-free game in a 21-19 win over a Wisconsin team that had scored 83, 48 and 70 points in its last three games. The BCS title game was exciting but uneven, with the winning quarterback's late fumble nearly costing his team the national title. Call this a protest vote or a complaint that TCU and Auburn can't meet to decide this on the field.

Bitter demonstrations and a series of roadside bombings and shootings across Iraq on Sunday and early today left at least 21 people dead, ending a relatively placid stretch since the parliamentary election a week and a half ago. The violence comes after more than a week of discontent and acrimony among some voters over the preliminary results of the Dec. 15 balloting for the first permanent national government since the U.S.-led invasion in 2003.

More than a quarter of MCI Inc.'s shares were withheld Monday in the reelection of the company's board of directors, a sizable protest against its decision to accept an $8.5-billion buyout from Verizon Communications Inc. rather than a higher-priced offer from Qwest Communications International Inc. Chief Executive Michael Capellas and Chairman Nicholas Katzenbach were reelected with about 72% of the shares cast at the telecommunications company's annual shareholder meeting.