BAGHDAD, October 17, 2005 (IslamOnline.net & News Agencies) - After the country's electoral commission said it was rechecking ballots, Iraq was forced Monday, October 17, to delay the announcement of results from its referendum on a new constitution.

As workers tallied votes in Baghdad, the Independent Electoral Commission of Iraq said it "needs several more days to complete this difficult and complex operation after finding that the figures from most provinces were too high," in an apparent reference to turnout levels, reported Agence France-Presse (AFP).

"This will require re-examination, comparison and verification because they are relatively high compared with international averages for elections," a statement said.

"The commission will only announce results when they have been verified."

The delay came after the commission said six majority Shiite provinces in southern Iraq had voted by more than 90 percent in favor of the constitution, while two Sunni-dominated provinces appeared to have rejected the text, by 80 percent in Salaheddin and by 54 percent in Diyala.

Officials estimated that more than half of Iraq's 15.5 million registered voters had cast ballots in the essentially peaceful referendum Saturday.

Iraq's Shiite and Kurds strongly support the constitution, while Sunnis generally oppose it.

Last-minute changes were made to the document to persuade Sunni voters to give their approval, including provisions for further amendments by lawmakers to be elected in mid-December elections.

Abdul Hussein al-Hindawi, a senior member of Iraq's Independent Election Commission, said he was unhappy with early reports of a "yes" victory.

"We are trying to remain cool. Our credibility depends on it," he told AFP.

Hindawi said he had been "surprised" by US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice's brief forecast Sunday of voters' approval, saying: "As far as I know, she's not a member of the electoral commission."

But a source close to the electoral commission acknowledged that it seemed "very difficult" for the "no" vote to win.

The constitution requires a simple majority to be approved but could be defeated if two-thirds of voters in three of Iraq's 18 provinces reject it.

There are majority Sunni populations in four provinces -- Al-Anbar, Diyala, Nineveh and Salaheddin -- and all reported strong voter turnout.

Media reports of a "yes" victory in Nineveh, which includes the restive mixed city of Mosul were refuted by regional electoral head Dhaher Habib al-Juburi, who said: "There is no truth to these reports," and stressed it would take days for the ballots to be properly counted.

Sunni sources in Nineveh told Al-Jazeera over 75% of voters in the province gave the controversial charter the thumbs down.

Two Sunni-dominated provinces had rejected the text, central commission spokesman Farid Ayyar, citing provisional figures of 80 percent in Salaheddin and 54 percent in Diyala.

Results from the two other Sunni-dominated provinces, Al-Anbar and Nineveh, were therefore crucial.

"The general trend in Al-Anbar is 'no,'" said Adel Al-Lami, president of the commission, without giving further details.

Pale neon lighting illuminated election workers in Baghdad as they opened clear plastic boxes containing vote tallies brought in from around the country.

Wearing white T-shirts and baseball caps bearing the electoral commission logo, workers emptied the contents onto long wooden tables, before the data was entered by batteries of computer operators.

"We trust in the ballot boxes," electoral commission officer Aida Salah said. "If it's no, it's no, if it's yes, it's yes."

Earlier counts from the referendum on the US-backed constitution suggested the controversial document has been approved by Iraqis, with Sunni leaders crying foul.

Results released by local officials showed a strong "No" vote in Salahaddin province, one of at least three with a Sunni Arab majority that might have helped form a veto, reported Reuters.