Haiti’s ruling party said it had pulled its candidate out of a presidential run-off yesterday following weeks of mounting US-led pressure over the fraud-tainted polls.

“Even though we are certain Jude Celestin received the necessary number of votes and was therefore through to the second round, INITE (Unity) has agreed to withdraw his candidacy for the presidency,” a party statement said.

There was no immediate confirmation from Mr Celestin himself, and one source said he was refusing to sign the necessary documentation and threatening to hold a press conference to deny the move.

The United States has led warnings that Haiti – still emerging from decades of political upheaval, dictatorship and bloodshed – must install a credible government or risk losing international support.

The impoverished Caribbean country is still recovering from the devastating January 2010 earthquake, and is dependent on international aid to feed its 10 million people. According to preliminary results from the November 28 elections, Mr Celestin garnered 7,000 more votes than popular singer Michel Martelly, securing a place in a run-off against former first lady Mirlande Manigat.

But within hours of the announcement, protests swept Haitian towns, leaving five dead and the country in crisis.

A team of international monitors called in by Preval found widespread vote tampering and fraud in Mr Celestin’s favour and recommended he should withdraw from the race and leave the field clear for a Martelly-Manigat battle.

The second round, originally scheduled for January 16, has been indefinitely postponed, even though Preval is due to step down in early February and hand over leadership of the poorest country in the Americas.

Political tensions have been furthered heightened by the surprise return earlier this month of ousted dictator Jean-Claude “Baby Doc” Duvalier after 25 years in exile, mostly in France.