Worn Out With Waiting

Worn out with waiting for the election results and disappointed that her candidate didn't win in the first round, Nawa Koné, a young widow and mother of two, sat listlessly Wednesday afternoon waiting for news.

She and her family were awakened in the middle of the night before the election when neighbors knocked on their door. Unless everyone got out of bed and bathed in cold water, the war would start again, they were told. Although the neighborhood has no running water, everyone in the area drew well water and did as they were told. They were afraid not to.

Korhogo: The Town Near the Village

At this voter registration center on the second floor of an elementary school in Korhogo, workers had already given out most of the plastic photo identity cards and the voter registration cards. Another center I visited had given out 96% of its cards. I have not met a single person in Korhogo who has been unable to pick up a card. During the legislative elections in 2002, officials were standing in front of city hall with stacks of cards, calling out names the night before the election. Many people never received their cards or felt intimidated from trying to pick up their cards. This time, every one I talk to feels included.

On est optimiste, people say.

A group of Gbagbo supporters came up from Abidjan and held a raucous cavalcade through town. You will hear these girls singing in my next podcast. One of their songs translates

Easy as eating corn on the cob! Winning the election! Gbagbo!