Millions of Iraqis Vote; Attacks Kill 35

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Millions of Iraqis flocked to vote in a historic election Sunday, defying insurgents who killed 35 people in a bloody assault on the poll.
Voters, some ululating with joy, others hiding their faces in fear, cast ballots in higher-than-expected numbers in Iraq's first multi-party election in half a century.
Samir Hassan, 32, who lost his leg in a car bomb blast last year, said as he waited to vote in Baghdad: "I would have crawled here if I had to. I don't want terrorists to kill other Iraqis like they tried to kill me."
But in parts of the Sunni Arab heartland, where the insurgency has been bloodiest and several parties called for a boycott, polling stations were empty.
Hailing the election as a "resounding success," President Bush said: "By participating in free elections, the Iraqi people have firmly rejected the anti-democratic ideology of the terrorists."
Despite draconian security measures imposed by the U.S.-backed interim government, militants launched a string of attacks to try to torpedo the polls.
They struck mainly in Baghdad, rocking the capital with nine suicide blasts in rapid succession. Al Qaeda's network in Iraq, led by Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, claimed responsibility.
It had declared war on the election, vowing to kill any "infidel" who dared to vote.
TURNOUT ABOVE EXPECTATIONS
Despite Sunday's violence, election officials said the turnout had been above expectations.
They originally put it at 72 percent but later backtracked, saying possibly eight million had voted, or just over 60 percent of registered voters. But they acknowledged the figures were guesswork