Managua - A man and a girl died Monday in Nicaraguan capital Managua, after being shot in a clash between supporters of the ruling Sandinista Front and the opposition Liberal Party, opposition leader Eliseo Nunez said. Nunez said the dead man, Jose Esteban Sandoval, had worked as an election official for the right-wing Liberal Party in Sunday's local election in Managua. He was apparently hit by a bullet, somewhere in the southern portion of the capital.
Nunez said an eight-year-old girl, allegedly a resident of the area where the clashes took place, was also killed.
Police said that young Sandinista and liberal supporters also threw stones at each other, while television reported that several people were injured and several others were arrested.
Both the Sandinista candidate, former boxer Alexis Arguello, and liberal candidate Eduardo Montealegre have claimed victory in the capital's mayoral election.
The latest partial results made public Monday by the electoral authorities say Arguello got 51.3 per cent of the votes to Montealegre's 46.4 per cent.
"We have counted 93.17 per cent of the ballot sheets corresponding to 1,963 electoral offices in Managua, and we are sure of our triumph," the liberal candidate said.
Former Nicaraguan president Arnoldo Aleman, a liberal leader, said he will not accept the results made public by the authorities, and promised to defend the popular vote "through all necessary paths."
"We are pacifists. We do not want the cannon's voice to roar. But we are not going to allow the loss of Nicaragua's democracy," Aleman said.
In no uncertain terms, he denounced "the fraud orchestrated by the Sandinista Front."
Mayors were elected Sunday in 100 towns in Nicaragua. The opposition had denounced fraud in favour of the party of leftist Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega even prior to the election.
By late Sunday, electoral authorities said Ortega's party had won 98 of 100 mayoral elections at stake. However, final results were pending.
US State Department deputy spokesman Robert A Wood referred to the Nicaraguan elections Monday.
"Although official results are not yet available, we note the domestic election observer groups and opposition parties have reported widespread irregularities taking place at voting stations throughout the country," Wood said.
"Unfortunately, the Supreme Electoral Council's decision to not accredit credible domestic and international election observers has made it difficult to properly assess the conduct of the elections," he said.
